New Bat-franchise: Robin/Nightwing

Robin really doesn't fit I don't think. Begins really tries to stress fear, and making Batman more than just a man in the minds of criminals. Teaming up with a smart-ass kid dressed in bright yellow shows Batman to be more like He really is, a dude in a cape.

Maybe instead of Robin then go straight to Nightwing, maybe. Depends on the costume, but a teenager dressed in yellow completly destroys the persona than Batman is trying to create in Begins.

A interesting angle might be Bruce taking in a orphan Jason Todd, who then discovers the batcave. He goes out against Bruce's wishes and trys to save his life, not as Robin just a ski mask or something, and gets murdered.

Read Sale and Loeb's Batman: Dark Victory for a good believeable reason why Batman would ever have a Robin.

I would love to see a good Nightwing film made, having him get right off the bus in Bludhaven and start from there.

MUST HAVE:

1) Flashbacks for the falling out.

2) Cameos gallore!

3) ROLAND DESMOND a. k .a Blockbuster!!! Throw in a good crime/murder story with it all coming back to Blockbuster and have Nightwing be unable to do anything about it.

Casting:

Christian Bale as Batman (cameo)
Alicia Witt as Oracle/Barbara Gordon (flashback)
Michael Caine as Alfred (cameo/flashback)
Trevor Morgan as Tim Drake/Robin (with Batman in cameo)
Ashley Scott as Black Canary (cameo in a flashback)
Morena Baccarin as Huntress (somehow tied up into the plot/story)

And the biggest casting question of them all:

Who will be Nightwing?

Well, one is an old Superman, one is a current superman, and the rest are all supermen in their own rights:

1) Dean Cain: Let his hair grow out long and he would look the part. But does he have the chops and can he shed the Superman monkier to actually make this a hit?

2) Tom Welling: He will never get the S on his chest, so why not make him Batman's first ward? He has the chops to pull off the sheding of the Superman label. But will he want to do another superhero property, even if it is a movie?

3) Tom Cavanagh: Needs to bulk up BIG TIME for this to work, but his hair and eye color match Nightwing perfectly. Has good chops as quick-witted characters.

4) Sean Maher: The Firefly doc is too unknown for this to work . . . or is he just right?

5) David Boreanaz: The sleeper choice. Was supposed to be Batman. Has a brooding quality but is he still fot from his Angel days, say season 3?

6) Jamie Bamber: The new "Apollo" on BSG is a dark horse for this role in my mind. He does good work on BSG, and could quite possibly hit Dick Grayson out of the park.

7) Paul Rudd. Too old? I'm not sure, but the Brian Fantana hair, with some trimming, would do justice to Nightwing.

Am I thinking about this too much? Does anyone else care as much as I do about a faithful Nightwing picture?

I care as much as I can while fully knowing that it will never happen. I'd love to think that he's big enough to just start up on his own, but his whole point of existence is so closely tied to Batman that unless you've introduced a Robin, I think it would be a bit difficult for the studio to pull the trigger on. I mean, after "Batman and Robin" was probably the perfect and only time this would have been a possibility. He was already wearing the costume, the right age, and the attitude.

I am almost positive that IF they ever reintroduce Robin, its probably a fourth film at least away. And IF they do, I'm fairly certain they'll go much younger both to distinguish themselves and because it's more interesting.

That said, I agree, Buldhaven would be the way to go, flashbacks and cameos galore, and a cool cat as Nightwing. Some of your choices are way too C-list, though I like Welling for some reason. He looks like a grown-up Robin.

For some reason, I really can't think of any A-listers other than Welling (if you consider Welling A-list) that fit the bill physically and craft wise.

Any suggestions?

Though I want Batman to be solo in the next couple of films, I see no reason why they couldn't start a Robin/Nightwing storyline after that. It's not the type of falling out that could be done in one movie, but explored in at least 2 like they're probably going to do with Two-Face. But I don't get the "Keep Robin away" sentiment. Lots of people want these movies to be a great depiction of Batman but when you bring up the guy he's often been partnered with for over 60 years the response seems to be "Ah, to hell with that Robin jackass!"

I think the fear is because the dynamic between them has never really been translated well. The 60s show was a campy buddy show, and ditto "Batman and Robin". "Batman Forever" wasn't terrible, but it just introduced a slightly younger, punkier version of Batman. They way they did it before was just an opportunity to take away from Batman, not to say asnything important about him or make him more interesting.

If they introduce Robin, have it done in a way that complements Batman, not overshadows him or pushes him into the background. Have it matter that a dark character like the Batman we have now takes on a child partner. And he does need to be a child, especially with Bale's more youthful quality himself. If they explore it as an interesting evolution of his character, then I'm all for it later on.

Basically, I think the animated series did a great job with them. It showed how Batman could take on a partner for company and to help a child that he might have been. But it also shows the strain that develops from Batman being such a controlling and demanding loner at heart. A "Robin's Recknoning" feel on the big screen would be awesome.