The Batman Spinoff Writer Opens Up Potential Plot of GCPD Show

Terence Winter recently opened up about a scrapped spin-off series connected to The Batman that he was once attached to. This series would have focused on the Gotham City Police Department (GCPD). It was intended to exist within the same universe as Matt Reeves’ 2022 film.

Winter was initially set to lead the project as head writer and showrunner for Max, but creative differences led to his departure less than a year later. Now, with The Penguin seeming to replace that project, Winter has shared new details with The Playlist about his vision for the GCPD series.

The idea was that we were going to do a 1970s cop show—something that felt like [Sidney Lumet’s 1981 crime and police drama] Prince of the City, but in the Gotham City Police Department. It was going to have that [‘70s] feel. It was going to be a present-day cop who is like a third-generation Gotham City cop, you know, his grandfather, his dad, and, you know, and Gotham City was largely corrupt… This is the guy we meet in the present day who’s realizing that he’s kind of on the wrong side. The Batman was somebody that lived in that world, but you never really saw him. And it was really all about the police department and sort of this guy.

Matt Reeves

Unfortunately, Reeves wasn’t aligned with Winter’s creative direction for the series. After a few more years of development and various attempts to reimagine the concept, the GCPD spin-off was ultimately shelved.

Despite the project not coming to fruition, Winter says there are no hard feelings between him and Reeves. He acknowledged that creative visions don’t always align, and sometimes projects simply don’t work out. He also mentioned that the existence of the Fox prequel series Gotham may have inadvertently impacted their concept, even though their approach would have been distinct. Winter said he liked The Penguin and the good work done on the series.

This revelation gives fans a glimpse into an alternate path the Batman universe could have taken. While Winter’s GCPD series never saw the light of day, it’s intriguing to consider how his 1970s cop show aesthetic might have translated to the gritty world of Gotham City.