Back in October, key art was released confirming the animated Christmas film Merry Little Batman would be hitting Amazon’s Prime Video on December 8th. We now have some images released giving a first look at some of the key players in the upcoming animated adventure. In addition, director and producer Mike Roth offers some insights into what viewers can expect.
“Because it’s a Christmas story, telling it through the eyes of a child seemed apropos,” Roth shared with EW regarding Damian being younger than how he’s usually portrayed. “Typically, Damian is a teenager who struggles with good and evil. While this was an interesting idea that was initially explored, we landed on a younger Damian. We decided to turn the clock back on Damian’s petulant nature to a time when he was more innocent and wide-eyed. The idea of a teeny, tiny little kid in this huge city aspiring to become Batman like his dad was such a fun starting point. It gave us the heart and comedy we were looking for and opened the window to a Gotham City Christmas like we’ve never seen before.”
“He is heavily inspired by Bob Fosse’s portrayal of the Snake in the 1974 version of The Little Prince,” Roth shared, regarding their take on the Joker. “Our Joker is a perfect foe to a little kid because he is basically like a big, peevish child himself — coaxing, cunning, and apt to rapid and irrational tantrums. His temperament swings from merry to murderous faster than you can say, ‘Holy nightmare, Batman.'”
The animated family action comedy holiday film Merry Little Batman finds young Damian Wayne (Yonas Kibreab) alone in Wayne Manor on Christmas Eve, where he must transform into “Little Batman” in order to defend his home and Gotham City from the crooks and supervillains intent on destroying the holidays.
Produced by Warner Bros. Animation and based on characters from DC, Merry Little Batman stars the voices of Luke Wilson as Bruce Wayne/Batman, David Hornsby as the Joker, and James Cromwell as Alfred. Roth directs from a screenplay by Morgan Evans (Teen Titans Go!) and Jase Ricci (Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham) – with Roth & Sam Register executive producing and Rebecca Palatnic producing.
Spinning out of the holiday mayhem will be the animated series Bat-Family, which follows Batman, Alfred, and young Damian Wayne—who has now taken on the mantle of Little Batman—alongside a few newcomers to Wayne Manor as they navigate the fun and frustrations of life as a superfamily. Ricci, Register, and Roth will executive produce the series, with Warner Bros. Animation producing.
Merry Little Batman swings onto Prime Video on Dec. 8.