The father of Yohualli Coatl, a youngAztec boy, is murdered bySpanishconquistadors. As an adult, Coatl is apriest in the court ofKing Moctezuma II and works with his fellow clerics in thetemple of Tzinacan to defy the Spanish invaders and protect their people using the masked persona of the "Batman".[2]
Horacio García Rojas[4][5] as Yohualli Coatl /Batman, a privileged boy born into the nobility of theAztecs and whose life crumbles when Spanish conquistadorHernán Cortés murders his father. As a man, he takes on the persona of "Batman", a masked warrior who fights forjustice and to exactrevenge on Cortés, while concealing his true nature behind the facade of a simple priest.Jay Hernandez voices the role in the English dub.[6]
Jorge R. Gutiérrez[7] as Toltecatzin, a variant ofThomas Wayne; a village leader and father of Yohualli Coatl, who was killed by Cortés.
José Carlos Illanes[7] asPedro de Alvarado, a variant ofAzrael; Cortez's right-hand man who is driven by strange voices in his head urging him to deliver "justice".
Teresa Ruiz stars as Jaguar Woman, ajaguar themed variant ofCatwoman; avirtuous thief dressed in the guise of an animal spirit, who initially steals for selfish purposes before willingly choosing to help Batman.
Maya Zapata as Forest Ivy, a variant ofPoison Ivy; a vicious demi-goddess of nature who crafts a body of plants to seek revenge on the Spanish for despoiling her jungle.
Roberto Sosa as Acatzin, a variant ofAlfred Pennyworth; a wise old temple caretaker who secretly assists Batman in crafting his weapons and gathering intelligence.
On June 13, 2022, at theGuadalajara International Film Festival, HBO Max Latin America announced that production on the film had begun. The first collaboration ofÁnima andWarner Bros. Animation, the film is directed by Juan Meza-León and produced by Anima's José C. García de Letona and Fernando De Fuentes.[3] The film is based onBatman-centric characters and is completely produced in Mexico.[8]Sam Register andTomás Yankelevich served as executive producers, while Alejandro Diaz Barriga served as a cultural consultant.[2][9]
Some reviewers said that the collaboration betweenWarner Bros. Animation and Latin American companies is likely "one of many", noting that HBO Max Latin America is aiming to "release 50–70 Latin America-branch originals" by 2023.[10][11] In June 2022, Horacio García Rojas was cast as Yohualli/Batman.[5] By September 2022, Aaron D. Berger and Carina Schulze joined the film's production team.[4]
The filmmakers did extensive research on Aztec culture, including how building structures were made and the meaning of colors in Aztec culture, in order to incorporate them into the film. Director Juan Meza-León said the filmmakers aimed to be as faithful to Aztec culture as possible while also incorporating elements from theBatman mythos, being a fan of the comics himself. In order to accomplish this, they hired Dr. Alejandro Barriga as consultant, as, being both an expert on Aztec culture and a comic book fan, "understood" the team's intention to combine both elements.[12]
Meza-León compared the film to an "Elseworlds" comic book, and said that, as such, they wanted to incorporate "the spirit of vengeance and trying to turn tragedy into motivation for good" he felt was inherent toBatman Elseworlds stories. He also decided to have the film's version of Batman to be inspired by the Aztec bat god Tzinacan in order to incorporate both elements of Aztec culture as well as "that element of mystery, the spookiness, the darkness, to it that Batman has".Poison Ivy was also reimagined as an Aztec deity so that she could serve as an introduction to the more mythical elements of Aztec culture.[12]
Ego Plum composed the film's score, which incorporates elements ofDanny Elfman's theme fromBatman (1989). According to Plum, the theme was incorporated with Elfman's approval; the filmmakers wanted to incorporate part of the theme into the score in order to "make [audiences] feel that it's part of the [Batman] world, yet it's its own thing at the same time".[12]
The trailer of the film produced a debate in the Spanish-speaking world regarding the possible perpetuation of the anti-Spanish "Black Legend", in which theSpanish Empire is portrayed as uniquely atrocious. This has led to discussion about how the film might raise awareness about the ongoing historical legacy of theSpanish conquest of the Aztec Empire.[13]
