Back in 1989, DC Comics released the first graphic novel labeled under the Elseworlds banner with the release of Batman: Gotham By Gaslight. The story featured the very talented Brian Agustyn (JLA: Year One) as writer alongside Mike Mignola (Hellboy)Â serving as the writer. Now, Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment have released a behind the scenes look at the similarly titled animated feature due sometime in early 2018.
The feature length film presents a very different Batman than the one we have all come to know and love. This Batman is set in Gotham City but looks and feels more like Victorian London in the late 19th century with the world’s greatest detective going after one of history’s most infamous killers: Jack the Ripper.
The film features many Elseworlds versions of familiar characters such as Commisioner Gordon, Detective Bullock, Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Poison Ivy, Harvey Dent, and Dr. Hugo Strange. Based on the released footage, we can expect Catwoman to be a very prominent figure in the film as guardian angel of sorts to helpless female prostitutes targeted by Jack the Ripper.
As you can tell, the subject matter is a bit more dark than usual compared to other DC animated films but the films creators have said that they want to draw on the era and the story of Jack the Ripper as accurately and as much as possible to really bring this story to life. The creators really dove into the world of Victorian era London in order to bring this version of Gotham to life but don’t take my word for it. Click on the video down below:
