Warner Bros. is plotting a new DC superhero film based on the Batman-centric character Nightwing.

Chris McKay, who most recently directed The Lego Batman Movie for Warner Bros., is in negotiations to helm the new film, and Bill Dubuque (The Accountant) is writing the script.

McKay has already directed a film with Dick Grayson in it: The character appeared in Lego Batman, as Robin, and was voiced by Michael Cera.

The character of Robin has yet to officially appear in the new Warner Bros. movies, although his graffiti-covered suit was shown in Batman v. Superman, and director Zack Snyder has said that at that point in time Robin had been killed by the Joker (there have been multiple Robins over the years in the comics, and Snyder did not say which one was killed by the Joker in his film). It's unclear where this new Nightwing story will fit in on the timeline.

The Nightwing project joins Warner Bros.' growing DC Extended Universe as the studio focuses on mining some of DC's most beloved characters for new films (as an example, Gotham City Sirens, with David Ayer attached to direct, will focus on the female villains of the universe, including Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn).

During an interview with Entertainment.ie, the subject of comic book movies inevitably came up, and Keoghan revealed that he's always been more fascinated by Robin than Batman and would love to play the character. When asked if he's actually spoken to anyone about the possibility, the 24-year-old Dubliner seems to hesitate, possibly indicating that he has indeed had some sort of discussions with the studio.

While Warner Bros. has a number of different DC Comics adaptations in the works at the moment, Nightwing is shaping up to be a hell of a thing. The project was announced in the wake of The LEGO Batman Movie, with that film’s director Chris McKay announced as the director of a live-action Nightwing movie that will finally give the Dick Grayson character his own film. McKay was an interesting choice to direct, given that his background is primarily in animation with shows like Robot Chicken and Titan Maximum, but with The LEGO Batman Movie McKay proved he can handle humor, heart, and action in equal measure, and it sounds like he has an exciting take on Nightwing lined up.

Collider’s own Christina Radish spoke with McKay at the press day for The LEGO Ninjago Movie, which he produced, and when asked about his take on Nightwing, McKay shared his enthusiasm for finally bringing Dick Grayson to the big screen:

That arc, of course, is something of a zero to hero:

As for what McKay has planned for Nightwing specifically, the film is still a ways off and casting hasn’t begun, but he hopes to focus on the practical strengths of the character rather than relying on CG effects:

This all sounds terrific and has me wondering why Warner Bros. hasn’t put this thing into overdrive yet. Of course, the studio is still in the midst of figuring out its DCEU slate, including toying with the idea of non-DCEU movies, but hopefully Nightwing gets off the ground sooner rather than later.

As for what is on the docket, Aquaman just wrapped filming, Shazam! starts production early next year, Gavin O’Connor (The Accountant) just signed on to direct Suicide Squad 2 to start filming in 2018, and Patty Jenkins finally closed her deal to return to write and direct Wonder Woman 2 for a 2019 release date. Things are finally coalescing for Warner Bros.’ DC slate, and here’s hoping Nightwing gets added to the immediate docket in the coming months.