Last summer, HBO Max announced plans to expand The Batman’s universe with a new spinoff series focusing on Gotham City’s police department. Boardwalk Empire creator Terence Winter was originally going to oversee the series. Unfortunately, Winter departed the show in November over creative differences. Now, the streaming service has finally found his replacement. Variety is reporting that Joe Barton will take over as executive producer and showrunner for the upcoming series.
Barton’s resume spans film and TV. He previously created Girl/Haji, which debuted on BBC Two in the U.K. and later hit Netflix in other countries. The series aired one eight-episode season before it was canceled in 2020. Barton also wrote The Ritual, a horror film that premiered on Netflix in 2017. His next big screenwriting credit is for Invasion, which stars Riz Ahmed and Octavia Spencer and premieres later this year.
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Variety refers to the new series as Gotham PD. Regardless, HBO Max has yet to reveal an official title for the project (and it’s unlikely to be this one, given its similarity to Fox’s Gotham). Plot details are scarce, but the show will reportedly offer a closer examination of the corruption inherent to Gotham City. Some fans are also expecting it to draw influence from DC’s Gotham Central comic book series from the early 2000s. The Batman director Matt Reeves is executive producing through his 6th and Idaho banner as part of his overall deal with Warner Bros. Television. The series is also part of Warner Bros.’ ongoing plan to pursue HBO Max spinoffs for all of its upcoming DC movies.
Are you excited to see what Barton brings to the spinoff? Tell us what you think in the comment section below!
Recommended Reading: Gotham Central Omnibus
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