In perfect casting news, Zoë Kravitz is officially taking on the iconic role of Selina Kyle, better known as Catwoman, in Matt Reeves’s upcoming adaptation of Batman. (It’s slated to come out in 2021.) Kravitz will star opposite Robert Pattinson and join a long line of brilliant actresses who have portrayed the supervillain—among them Eartha Kitt, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Halle Berry.
But seeing Kravitz as Catwoman is especially significant because the actor, who has been vocal about the ways in which casting directors pigeonhole women of color, was actually turned away from a smaller role in a past Batman production. She talked to Nylon about the experience in 2015 and said, “They told me that I couldn’t get an audition for a small role they were casting because they weren’t ‘going urban.’ I was like, ‘What does that have to do with anything?’ I have to play the role like, ‘Yo, what’s up Batman? What’s going on wit chu?’”
Now she’s at the very top of the bill—and the internet has been rejoicing, naturally. Some pointed out that Kravitz will be a great fit for the role because she already voiced the character in the Lego Batman Movie. Others enjoyed that Jason Momoa, who is married to her mother, Lisa Bonet, plays Aquaman, which makes for a fun family DC mashup.
Zoë Kravitz also got an adorable message from Momoa, offering his congratulations for landing the part.
“I’m so proud of u zozo bear. On and off screen OHANA. DC WB ohana Lola and Wolfies big sister is CAT WOMAN,” he wrote in the caption that accompanied a photo of the two of them together. “Unbelievable so freaking stoked. Your going to have so much fun.”
