Sebastian Stan Says Oscar-Nominated ‘The Apprentice’ Led to His Mysterious ‘The Batman Part II’ Role

Sebastian Stan is familiar with superhero films after more than a decade as Bucky Barnes in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Still, his move to Matt Reeves’ The Batman Part II was not merely about adding a DC credit. The chance instead grew out of one of the most unexpected and transformative projects of his career. Stan was at the Toronto International Film Festival this week with director Cristian Mungiu to promote their new drama Fjord, about a Romanian family in Norway whose children are taken away by social services.

In an interview with Collider’s Perri Nemiroff at TIFF, Stan was asked what Reeves’ sequel could offer him after so much time in the superhero genre. While he avoided revealing details about his mystery character, he explained which earlier performance drew Reeves’ interest. Stan said his Oscar-nominated portrayal of Donald Trump in Ali Abbasi’s The Apprentice directly started his conversations with Reeves. He never imagined the controversial biopic would lead him to Gotham City, but Reeves already knew the filmmakers behind Stan’s more independent work. He explained:

“Well, you know what's interesting is all these directors, they watch each other, believe it or not, even if they're doing different sizes and stuff. Matt Reeves, he knows Cristian, and he knew Ali Abbasi. He was a big fan of The Apprentice, and that's how that conversation started. I mean, not in a million years did I think that doing that movie was going to lead to me having a conversation with that director.”

‘The Apprentice’ Led Sebastian Stan to ‘The Batman Part II’

For Stan, blockbuster filmmaking and smaller character-driven projects are not opposing career paths but parts of one theatrical ecosystem. He argued that both kinds of movies ultimately depend on each other, especially as the industry keeps trying to bring audiences back to theaters. Though he could not share story details, Stan assured fans that Reeves has handled the long-awaited Batman sequel with considerable care:

“These worlds consistently collide, and I think the thing about these movies is those movies need these movies. And these movies, to some extent, need those. It's an ecosystem that they all have to thrive in. It's all for the better of getting people to the theater, which we have to do everything for. But again, if all I can say about the movie is that it's just to say there's real thought behind that movie, and Matt certainly has thought about it for three, four years.”

Stan joins an expanding ensemble led by returning star Robert Pattinson, with Scarlett Johansson, Charles Dance, Brian Tyree Henry, and Sebastian Koch among the sequel’s new additions. Reeves returns to direct from a script he co-wrote with Mattson Tomlin, while the identities of several new characters are still officially under wraps.

The Batman Part II is currently set to hit theaters on February 18, 2028. Collider will have more from Nemiroff’s conversation with Stan and Mungiu.