Short cuts

The latest happenings in movieland…

PUZZLE MASTER

Who’s afraid of the big, black bat? Not Paul Dano, who’s just signed on to play the Riddler in Matt Reeves’ The Batman. The standalone reboot will pair Dano with Robert Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne as the tongue-twister-loving Edward Nygma. We’ll have to wait until 2021 to find out if he’ll wear a skin-tight green onesie like Jim Carrey in 1995’s Batman Forever.

COMPUTER THRILLS

Still surprised The Matrix is getting rebooted? Just wait ’til you get a load of the cast. Yahya AbdulMateen II (Aquaman), Jessica Henwick (Iron Fist) and Neil Patrick Harris are all plugging in for the fourquel, which is being overseen by Lana Wachowski and is due in 2022. Meanwhile, Jada Pinkett Smith will return as Niobe, alongside Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss.

TRUE NORTH

Having conquered the hearts of movie fans with his first two films The Witch and The Lighthouse, Robert Eggers is going after vikings with his third, The Northmen. It’ll reunite him with Anya Taylor-Joy and Willem Dafoe, while Alexander Skarsgård is in talks to star as the 10th-century Nordic prince out to avenge his father’s murder. Nicole Kidman and Bill Skarsgård are also in talks.

PURPLE CRAZE

Of all the Oscar-nominated actors you might expect to dust off Barney the Dinosaur for a live-action revival, Daniel Kaluuya isn’t the most likely. But he’s doing just that and has teamed up with Mattel for a live-action upgrade. “We’re excited to see if his message of ‘I love you, you love me’ can stand the test of time,” says Kaluuya.