The fan community is abuzz today with a new rumor that suggests that Batman’s next big screen appearance might not be in the proposed Warner Bros. reboot but could, instead, be as a team member of the seemingly fast-tracked Justice League. The story, which originated at Batman on Film, suggests that the superhero ensemble will be the next DC Comics superhero adaptation after next summer’s Man of Steel.

The major element that appears to lend credence to this report is the fact that Justice League has a completed screenplay from Gangster Squad screenwriter Will Beall while another solo adventure of the Caped Crusader currently exists almost entirely in speculation. Some have suggested that Warner Bros. should find a way to continue Christopher Nolan’s trilogy while others have called for a more dramatic reboot of the character, potentially adapting a property like “Batman Beyond”.

What’s important to remember is that, as much as fans wish it to be the case, there’s currently no guarantee that Justice League will share a cinematic universe with any films past, present or future. Although the approach certainly worked for Marvel’s The Avengers, Warner Bros. doesn’t necessarily need to continue with Henry Cavill as Superman nor would they need to keep whoever they cast as Batman for a franchise reboot.

After all, when the studio was moving forward with George Miller’s now-defunct motion-capture take on the property a few years ago, it was being planned to feature a Batman unlike anything in Nolan’s films and the two projects would have seen release independently of one another.

That being said, Justice League could indeed wind up the launching place for a new take on the Dark Knight, but only time will tell for sure what Warner Bros. has in mind for the DC superheroes.