Several months ago, we exclusively reported that part of the deal that brought Matt Reeves back to the table for The Batman negotiations was that he’d get full creative control. While outlets like Variety were busy assuring people that he was merely stepping in to direct a film based on the script written by Ben Affleck and Geoff Johns- which was then rewritten by Batman v Superman and Argo‘s Chris Terrio- we told you that the War For The Planet of The Apes director actually intended to start from scratch.

Within weeks, reports began to flood the net that Reeves had, in fact, tossed the Affleck/Johns/Terrio script in the trash.

Quite a bold move when you consider that it was written by two Academy Award-winning screenwriters and a DC Comics guru. And then, after that, things went radio silent. There was never a formal announcement about who was actually writing The Batman now that they’d gone back to the drawing board.

Just in case there was any doubt that Reeves had hit the Reset Button, the director recently told MTV’s Happy Sad Confused podcast about his plans for what script he’d be using for the shoot. Asked if he was going to be working off of Affleck/Johns/Terrio script, Reeves replied:

“No it’s a new story. It’s just starting again. I’m excited about it. I think it’s going to be really cool.”

And yet, the follow-up question of “Who’s writing this film, which is positioned to be the crown jewel of the DCEU once Justice League comes out in November?” has remained a mystery.

Sources are now telling me that Reeves is bringing in his pal Mark Bomback to pen the new script for The Batman, which at one point Reeves has described as being a noir-driven, detective movie. Reeves could also be writing the script himself, but that’s not something he’s known for. In fact, in the last 20 years, Reeves has only co-written three movies (Under Siege 2: Dark Territory, Let Me In, and War For The Planet of The Apes). This flies in the face of the assumption that Reeves is writing The Batman on his own.

It makes sense, of course, that Bomback would write the script that Reeves would direct. After all, Bomback wrote the screenplay for the last two of the Planet of the Apes prequels, both of which achieved great critical success, and reaped handsome box office rewards.

Bomback is no genre or reinvention slouch, having penned The Wolverine in 2013 and a remake of Total Recall in 2012. While those were not received as gleefully by audiences as the Apes partnerships, it’s clear that Bomback has earned his stripes and has the chops to write what will surely be a highly scrutinized script.

SplashReport reached out to Warner Bros., who had no response and have yet to answer our request for comments on this exclusive rumor.

Earlier today, contributor Mario-Francisco Robles discussed this rumor and proposed what direction he hopes the Bomback/Reeves script takes The Batman in on the El Fanboy Podcast, which you can listen to right here:

What do you think of this choice? Considering the prestigious names once attached to The Batman’s scripting duties, do you think Bomback is the right choice to give us the Dark Knight of our cinematic dreams?

Sound off in the comments below, and don’t forget to share where you heard it first when and if this gets confirmed later on!