He’s done wizardry, vampires, and Claire Denis space erotica—but now Robert Pattinson will direct his brooding gaze upon the grim world of Gotham as the new Batman. Variety reports that R-Patz is in final negotiations to succeed Ben Affleck as the vigilante hero in Matt Reeves’ The Batman, which is currently set for a 2021 release. (Deadline says that Pattinson is on the short list for the role, although fellow superhumanly tall Brit Nicholas Hoult is also in the mix.)

Pattinson, at 33, would be the second-youngest actor to play movie Batman after Christian Bale, who was 31 at the 2005 premiere of Batman Begins. Reeves, who was behind the latest two Planet of the Apes sequels, is still polishing a final version of the script, and no start date has been set for shooting. Pattinson is currently set to star in Christopher Nolan’s still-untitled next movie, and he stars in the The Lighthouse, from The Witch’s Robert Eggers, which is about to premiere at Cannes. While some are balking at the idea of Edward Cullen as the Caped Crusader (“Don’t make the Batfleck mistake again” one petition pleads), other Batfans, like us, are hyped.