All Batman Movies And TV Shows Coming In 2026 & Beyond
Batman is one of the biggest characters in modern pop culture. The Caped Crusader debuted in 1939 and has been reinvented dozens of ways over the years for the screen, with adaptations ranging drastically from the self-aware campy comedy of Batman (1966) to the crime drama of The Dark Knight (2008). In recent years, DC has been focusing on expanding other corners of the universe beyond the historic focus on Batman and Gotham City, with major films like Supergirl (2026) and The Suicide Squad (2021) coming out alongside shows like Peacemaker (2022) and Creature Commandos (2024).
Despite that, there have been plenty of good films and shows adapting Batman—most notably The Batman (2022). In the coming years, some already established adaptations will be getting new entries on TV and in film, while other takes on the character have uncertain (but hopeful) futures. Looking to 2026 and beyond, here are all the confirmed Batman adaptations that you might get to see on your screens soon.
After a stunning and surprisingly subversive first season, Batman: Caped Crusader (2024) is set to debut a second season sometime in 2026. Created by Batman: The Animated Series (1992) visionary Bruce Timm, Caped Crusader is a reimagining of the character that sets the action in a thematically mature, emotionally grounded, and visually retro world.
The first season, now streaming on Prime Video, saw Bruce Wayne begin his work as a vigilante in Gotham City. The teaser at the end of those initial episodes set the stage for the Joker to enter the scene—which, given some of the wild reimaginings the show has already played with using characters like Penguin, Two-Face, and Harley Quinn, could mean anything for the Dark Knight. Anyone who grew up with the DCAU needs to check out the first season ahead of this upcoming new adventure.
One of the best modern Batman adaptations for younger audiences, BatWheels (2022) is currently airing its third season. The show, which is available on HBO Max, focuses on the vehicles used by Batman and his sidekicks to protect Gotham. Playing at times like Cars (2006) in the DC Universe, BatWheels has proven to be a solid hit for the DC Universe.
The show does not have any confirmation for Season 4, but the overall success of the show with kids will likely open the garage door for another batch of episodes. If you have kids in your life who love cute shows like Thomas & Friends (1984) or cartoons like Spidey and His Amazing Friends (2021), BatWheels will be a great pick—and it already has a solid library of episodes.
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A far cry from BatWheels, Clayface looks to remind audiences just how intense the DC Universe can be. Similar in vein to Joker (2019), Clayface looks to be a more dramatic and grounded take on the superhero universe than most adaptations of the world.
Helmed by Speak No Evil (2024) director James Watkins, Clayface reimagines the shapeshifting Batman villain as a body horror story, focusing on a struggling actor who tries to bounce back from a disfiguring accident by allowing a scientist to experiment on him by making his body living clay. The trailer for the film highlights just how creepy the concept could be, with Clayface potentially opening the door for more horror-style films to come be a part of the greater cinematic DC Universe that James Gunn is shepherding with films like Superman (2025) and shows like Lanterns (2026).
Batman: Knightfall will be the first entry in a new epic animated Batman trilogy. Over the years, there have been plenty of great original animated Batman films, such as Batman: Gotham by Gaslight (2018), Batman: The Long Halloween (2021), and Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham (2023).
All of these unique approaches experiment with style and genre in exciting ways, and the next trilogy from WB Animation has a lot of epic potential. One of the upcoming films in DC's animated library will be a three-part adaptation of the massive "Knightfall" crossover from the comics that established Bane as one of the Dark Knight's most fearsome foes. The first part of the story will likely focus on Bane’s plans to “break” Batman by unleashing all of his villains onto Gotham, all building to an iconically brutal moment in the history of the character.
Likely one of the most anticipated Batman adaptations currently in the works, The Batman Part II looks to continue Matt Reeves’ gritty take on the franchise. Bringing back Robert Pattinson as a younger version of the Caped Crusader who is still trying to balance his own rage with his noble intentions, The Batman Part II will continue Bruce Wayne’s complex arc by seemingly adapting elements of The Long Halloween.
Sebastian Stan and Scarlett Johansson have joined the cast in some key ways, speaking to the ambition and scale of Reeves’ plans for the character. Especially as its own standalone contrast to the broader DC Universe of the Gunn-helmed universe, The Batman Part II has the potential to be the most dramatically rich adaptation of the character on screen.
Starting out on the DC Universe app before becoming a breakout animated hit on HBO Max, Harley Quinn (2019) has featured a very fun take on Batman that could return in Season 6. A take on the DC Universe more in the vein of Rick and Morty (2013) than typical superhero stories, Harley Quinn has been a great exploration of the titular villain as she’s grown from Joker’s minion to her own woman.
Batman has been a fixture of the show, here imagined as a well-meaning hero who also suffers from plenty of neuroses and relationship woes. The Season 5 finale could work as an ending for the show, but Season 6 is still in flux—and with the ending of Season 5 setting the stage for Bruce’s son Damian to date the Joker’s adopted daughter Sophia, it would be a shame not to get more of that unexpectedly great comedic dynamic between Diedrich Bader's Batman and Alan Tudyk's Joker.
Created by Regular Show (2010) veteran Mike Roth and building off the success of Merry Little Batman (2023), Bat-Fam (2025) is a cute animated sitcom that has a lot of fun with the premise. Starring Luke Wilson as a single dad version of Batman who is juggling his responsibilities to Gotham just as much as he's trying to be a good father to Damian, Bat-Fam proved to be a really fun take on the premise.
With a large roster of goofball villains that could only expand going into another batch of episodes, there’s lots of potential for Bat-Fam’s future. Season 2 hasn't been confirmed or denied, so fans of weird animated shows like Adventure Time (2010) will have a lot of fun with this strange and sweet take on the Batman mythos.
One of the most intriguing upcoming adaptations of Batman is Batman: The Brave & The Bold. Announced as part of James Gunn and Peter Safran's DC Universe, Batman: The Brave & The Bold will reportedly adapt the comic book story that introduced Damian Wayne to the franchise. The film is currently in development, with The Hollywood Reporter confirming that Birds of Prey (2020) writer Christina Hodson is writing the screenplay and It (2017) director Andy Muschietti is set to direct it.
Having previously worked together on The Flash (2023), the pair know how to work around one another to bring strange superhero universes to life. The film does not have a cast or set release date, but it carries a lot of expectation to bring in a version of Batman who can fit in alongside the rest of Gunn's approach to the DC Universe.
