Steven Soderbergh Takes Over The Batman Part II Production Amid Matt Reeves' Hiatus

With Matt Reeves taking a temporary leave for urgent family reasons, Steven Soderbergh has been brought in to steer The Batman Part II across the finish line. The Oscar-winning director will be in constant dialogue with Reeves. The latter will return to post-production duties once he has resolved his crisis.

DC Studios told Variety, “As Matt Reeves continues to attend to an ongoing family matter, Steven Soderbergh, as an admirer of Matt’s work, approached Matt and will step in, with the full support of DC Studios, to help the writer-director complete the final weeks of principal photography on The Batman Part 2. Matt and Steven will work closely together with the actors and crew to fulfill Matt’s vision of the film.”

Soderbergh put out statement:

“I thought Matt Reeves’ work on The Batman was stunning; it was intentional, specific, and rigorously coherent. The goal here is to work with Matt and his team to generate footage that will integrate seamlessly with what’s already been shot so Matt can properly finish his film.”

Reeves too clarified on X, "Just to be clear, I am not leaving The Batman Part II. I am profoundly grateful to Steven for coming to my aid during this challenging time to help me finish principal photography. Thank you to all for your concern and well wishes.

The Batman Part II's Release Timeline

Warner Bros. and DC Studios announced The Batman Part II production pause in early October, stating that Reeves temporarily stepped away from the project to handle a “family matter.”

“Production on ‘The Batman Part II’ has been temporarily paused while Matt Reeves focuses on a family matter,” a rep said in a statement at the time. “Matt has the full support of DC Studios and we look forward to continuing the journey soon.”

The Batman Part II is slated to release on February 18, 2028. The highly anticipated sequel has already been hit by several delays since it was announced at CinemaCon 2022. The original release date was set for Oct. 2, 2026, before Warner Bros. pushed it to Oct. 1, 2027. In June, the film was pushed again to February 2028. Reeves’ first Batman was released in March 2022 to critical and commercial acclaim. Robert Pattinson returns as the Caped Crusader in the sequel. Other cast members include Scarlett Johansson, Colin Farrell, Sebastian Stan, Andy Serkis and Jeffrey Wright.