Titans Star Curran Walters Reacts To Jason Todd Recasting For Batman Spin-Off

Despite “Lanterns” throwing out some allusions to Gotham City and its Dark Knight, James Gunn’s DC Universe still does not have its own Batman. While DC Studios is supposedly working on “The Brave and the Bold” movie that will co-star a new Batman and his son Damian Wayne/Robin, there’s been little movement on the project. In fact, it looks like we’re getting a movie about two different Robins first.

That would be “Dynamic Duo,” an animated film being developed with Swaybox Studios (known for a distinctive “momo animation” style that combines puppetry and CGI). Due out in 2028, the “Dynamic Duo” of the title are the first two Robins, Dick Grayson and Jason Todd. Hollywood scooper Jeff Sneider recently reported the casting for “Dynamic Duo”: Mason Thames (“The Black Phone,” “Idiots”) will play Dick, and Logan Kim (“Ghostbusters: Afterlife”) will voice Jason. Lee Pace and Steve Buscemi will also appear as leaders of the Red Hood criminal gang. Sneider’s reporting on the “Dynamic Duo” casting has been corroborated by Deadline — and there’s someone making his displeasure known.

Curran Walters, who played Jason Todd on the HBO Max series “Titans,” commented on Kim’s casting on Instagram and he did not seem happy. It’s worth noting Walters has previously voiced a lot of interest in bringing his Jason to the movies, including tagging Matt Reeves on Twitter and volunteering himself as Jason, saying he should play the character in DC Studios’ “Teen Titans” film, or tweeting things like, “Imagine a Jason Todd and Batman movie. Just saying.”

Walters reprising his role like that was never realistic; compare it to when DC fans said that the now-defunct DC Extended Universe should’ve cast “The Flash” TV show star Grant Gustin in that role in “The Flash” film. In reality, such a move only causes brand confusion and restricts filmmakers’ ability to cast actors they want.

“Titans” borrowed primarily from the 1980s run of “The New Teen Titans,” written by Marv Wolfman, which had previously influenced the mega popular 2003 “Teen Titans” series. During this era, Dick Grayson was still going by Robin, but he’d drifted from Batman. In the comics, and as adapted by the show, he shed his old wings and took a new name: Nightwing. Meanwhile, Batman had recruited Jason as a replacement Robin.

Dick (Brenton Thwaites) begins “Titans” having recently fallen out with Batman (Iain Glen); Jason shows up as a guest star in Season 1 and their big brother-little brother relationship becomes a cornerstone of the series. “Titans” Season 3 even centered its primary season arc around Jason, adapting “Batman: A Death in the Family” (where he’s murdered by the Joker) and “Batman: Under the Hood” (when Jason returns to life as a lethal vigilante, the Red Hood).

Walters’ four-season run on “Titans” alone makes him wanting to come back for round two kind of ridiculous. He already portrayed Jason Todd in his most famous stories, now he wants to do it again? He’s also almost 10 years older than Logan Kim (who is 19 as of this writing), and the casting alone suggests that “Dynamic Duo” wants to cast younger.

James Gunn has said that “Dynamic Duo” is not part of his DC Universe and also shot down any rumors the movie had been rewritten to make that connection. But if it’s a success, hopefully Mason Thames and Logan Kim won’t have to resort to social media pressure efforts to make the DCU jump.

“Dynamic Duo” is scheduled for a theatrical release on September 22, 2028.