Nightwing director-to-be Chris McKay talks about why the character is so great

After the announcement just a few days ago that The LEGO Batman director Chris McKay was set to direct a Nightwing movie, we’ve been stoked.

Why? Well, because Nightwing AKA Dick Grayson is a fantastic character who is multilayered and basically a good humoured Batman. And yes, we do think there’s a (small) chance that Warners are worried that Ben Affleck may not want to do too many Batman movies and they may want an alternative character to replace him in-universe.

But we could be wrong.

Nightwing’s past as an orphan who lost his parents violently and was adopted by Bruce Wayne before becoming Robin and later Nightwing means he’s maybe even more interesting than the Dark Knight himself and it looks like McKay has a really great understanding of that.

The director (all going well, fingers crossed etc) has been talking about the character and has some great observations and, while he confirms that nothing is signed and the story isn’t fleshed out yet, he certainly seems to see a side to the character that comicbook movies have not explored… the difference of class and wealth in a hyper realistic world.

“Bruce Wayne in my mind came from privilege and I think that’s why he’s more dour and angry. He’s self-made as far as his becoming all of these cool things we like him for… Dick Grayson didn’t come from that… He’s got some of the same negatives as Bruce Wayne and then from a society standpoint — obviously he was adopted into Bruce Wayne’s life… but he didn’t start that way,” says McKay.

Speaking about The Flying Graysons (Dick’s family who were murdered in front of him), and the lives they led as acrobats at a circus, McKay points out that they couldn’t be more different than the Waynes: “They’re people who live hand-to-mouth and that’s something that informs him and his attitude.

“He’s this guy who has all these negatives and then even more negatives and yet he remains. Those are things why I like Dick Grayson, why I like the idea of Nightwing as a movie.”

Now tell us that he doesn’t have an understanding and sees a dynamic (duo) that could definitely tell a new sort of tale.

The excitement starts here, guys.

Check out all that he says in the audio clip below:

Chris McKay talks about #Nightwing and what fascinates him about the character! pic.twitter.com/dBafouvSU8

— #WonderGal (@amazonheroicon) February 26, 2017