Batman: Caped Crusader

> Bats frighten me. It's time to make the criminals of Gotham share my fear."
>
> -Bruce Wayne to Alfred Pennyworth

Official poster for Batman: Caped Crusader

Batman: Caped Crusader is a 2031 superhero film based on the superhero, Batman. It was produced by Bold Inc. and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. It was released on September 26, 2031 and serves as the second film in the DC Cinematic Extended Universe (DCCEU).

It was directed by Tyler Jett from a screenplay written by Matt Reeves for the cancelled The Batman IV. He revised the story with the help of Reeves and they merged the story for the cancelled firm with the script for Jett's cancelled TV series, The Batman.

A follow-up, Wonder Woman, was released on December 19, 2031

A direct sequel, Batman: The Dark Knight, was put into active development on December 5, 2031, and had it's worldwide release on March 25, 2033.

## Plot

Bruce Wayne returns to Gotham City, 18 years after the death of his parents. Lieutenant James Gordon transfers to the police department in Gotham, trying to put his troubles in Chicago behind him. Commissioner Loeb partners Gordon with the corrupt Detective Flass, who is uneasy with Gordon's refusal to break rules. Bruce returns to his butler Alfred at Wayne Manor, and continues his physical training with no clear goal. Flass has Gordon beaten with baseball bats by other cops, enough to send a message without putting him in the hospital. Gordon later runs Flass off the road in his car, then tosses him a baseball bat and beats him up the same way. Bruce begins his career as a vigilante by posing as a drifter in the East End. He meets the underage prostitute Holly Robinson, and fights her pimp Stan. The prostitute Selina Kyle attacks him to protect Holly, and this conflict gets him arrested. Bruce breaks out of his handcuffs and totals the cop car to escape, then drags both the officers to safety. Bruce crawls to his father's study, knowing he'll bleed out and die if he doesn't ring a bell for Alfred to come save him. He remembers the night his parents were killed, and asks his father for inspiration, as he'd rather die than wait another hour. Without warning, a bat comes crashing through the window, and he decides that he will become a bat.

Gordon is driving to work when he receives a call from Stan Merkel. There's a schizophrenic holding children hostage, and the carelessly violent SWAT officer Branden has been put in charge. To save the children from Branden, Gordon puts down his gun and defuses the situation himself. He gains favor with the press, and Loeb begins looking for ways to take him down. His pregnant wife Barbara is disappointed when he's called away from home to deal with "a bat." In his first outing as Batman, Bruce attacks some teenage burglars and almost dies. Five weeks later, there are dozens of reports of a bat-monster systematically taking down criminals. Gordon is put in charge of an anti-Batman task force with a cop named Sarah Essen. Batman interrupts a dinner of Gotham's wealthiest and most corrupt at the Mayor's mansion. He blows a hole through the wall with explosives and tells them that none of them are safe from him. Loeb cracks down on Batman when mafia don Carmine "The Roman" Falcone is left tied up and naked. Gordon suspects that Assistant District Attorney Harvey Dent is Batman, and Essen guesses that it might be Wayne. Gordon meets Batman for the first time when Batman dives in front of a truck to save an old lady, right in front of him. Batman escapes at gunpoint to an abandoned tenement. Gordon calls for back-up, and Loeb has Branden firebomb the building despite Gordon's protests.

Branden's SWAT team corners Batman in the tenement, and 18 men are sent to shoot him on sight. Batman loses his Utility Belt but survives, although some winos are not so lucky. He systematically takes down the SWAT officers one by one. Selina Kyle and Holly Robinson arrive to watch the spectacle, along with many others. Batman escapes using ultrasonic technology that attracts every bat in the county. He steals a motorcycle and drives off in a swarm of bats, disappearing before they dissipate. Gordon begins having an affair with Essen, and fighting with his pregnant wife. Selina punches out her pimp, then leaves with Holly. She spends her savings on a cat costume, taking inspiration from Batman to become Catwoman.

Essen transfers to New York City when they decide to end their affair. Gordon arrests notorious drug kingpin Jefferson Skeevers, who has ties to Loeb and Flass. Dent allows Skeevers to be released on bail, so Batman can intimidate him into testifying. Skeevers turns over on Flass, who turns over on Loeb. Gordon visits Wayne Manor to check Bruce's alibis, and Bruce puts on a convincing show as a drunken playboy. Loeb threatens to tell Barbara about Sarah, so Gordon tells her himself. Barbara finally delivers, and they have a son. Catwoman gets upset that Batman is receiving credit for her crimes, and decides to scratch her victims' faces as a signature. Batman listens in on the Roman while he is hiring Johnny Viti as a hitman. Catwoman interrupts this meeting to rob Falcone, and meets Batman for the first time. Batman takes out the bodyguards while Catwoman scratches Falcone, and they both escape. Bruce realizes Falcone is targeting Gordon, and drives to his house in daylight with no costume. Viti tries to kidnap Gordon's baby, but Gordon chases him down in a firefight. They tumble over a bridge, and the baby falls. Bruce leaps in and saves the child's life. Gordon remarks that he cannot see Batman without his glasses, and tells him to leave before the cops arrive. In the aftermath, Loeb goes down and gets replaced by Commissioner Grogan. The Roman goes to war with his sister, Carla Viti. Gordon gets promoted to Captain and begins seeing a marriage counselor with Barbara. Batman and Gordon begin working together, meeting on the rooftop. Gordon remarks that someone has threatened to poison the reservoir, a man calling himself the Joker.

## Post-Credit Scene

There is only one post-credit scene in Batman: Caped Crusader. Which is a rarity for the films contained in the DCCEU. It takes place roughly a week after the main events of the film and consists of Bruce in the Batcave at the Batcomputer when Superman appears on his radar. He immediately figures out who Superman is and leaves the Batcave to travel to Clark Kent's apartment in Metropolis.