The situation surrounding the Nightwing movie that’s been in development at Warner Bros. and DC Films for years is a tough one to explain, even though the rumor mill regularly springs into life claiming that it’s set to be dusted off and thrown into production.
The LEGO Batman Movie director Chris McKay has been attached since the beginning, but he’s since moved on to make his live-action directorial debut on Amazon’s The Tomorrow War, while he’s now gearing up for Dracula spinoff Renfield, with his long-gestating Jonny Quest adaptation still bubbling away in the background.
McKay revealed during The Tomorrow War‘s press circuit that Nightwing isn’t dead, and he’d still love to make it, but he’s just waiting on the studio to inform him of the plans or lack thereof. Plenty of names have been touted to headline the cast during the long lull period, and in a new interview with ScreenRant, Aladdin‘s Mena Massoud became the latest to put himself forward.
“I’ve been obsessed with Batman, but I think Batman’s kind of… it’s been done a lot now and it’s been done by some fantastic actors. I don’t think I can top them in that way, but Nightwing just has a really interesting story that hasn’t been done before, he’s a little bit younger. So yeah, he’s a character I’ve just always been drawn to.”
Looking at the current complexion of the DCEU, Nightwing feels a lot more likely to get the green light as an HBO Max exclusive at this stage, when the theatrical side of the shared universe appears to be relying more on brand recognition and star power. Should it eventually see the light of day, though, McKay knows that Massoud is just a phone call away if that’s the direction he wants to go in.