DC's legendary Dark Knight is taking on a whole new identity in Aztec Batman: Clash of Empires, a reimagining that fuses Mesoamerican history with one of the world's most popular heroes. At San Diego Comic-Con 2025, The Direct spoke with the film's creative team, including director Juan Meza-Leon, producers Jose C. Garcia de Letona and Aaron Berger, writer Ernie Altbacker, and voice actors Raymond Cruz and Horacio Garcia Rojas. Their passion for this new take on an iconic character was palpable, making way for a new story with a built-in audience.
Aztec Batman arrives on HBO Max September 18, 2025. It follows Yohualli Coatl (Rojas), a young Aztec priest who becomes Batman after Spanish conquistadors kill his father and invade his homeland.
Alongside this new hero, the story introduces unique versions of classic villains, including Hernan Cortes as Two-Face, Pedro de Alvarado as the Joker, and a mystical take on Poison Ivy.
Raymond Cruz, who voices the Joker in the English dub, explained, "It becomes this story of revenge, of anger, of vengeance...for the Joker, he loses everything, and he doesn’t see the light at the end of the tunnel."
Rojas added how Batman's origins differ compared to his classic antagonist, "Batman understands you need to release this pain...rebuild that pain and use that pain to be a superhero."
A New Batman & Joker Origin Story
"It Becomes This Story Of Revenge..."
- Question: "How would you describe the new origin stories and evolution of Batman and Joker in this film?"
Raymond Cruz: You get a history lesson about the Aztec Empire and the invasion of the Spanish and then all of a sudden, it turns into this origin story of Batman and the Joker characters, but you don't see it coming from the very beginning, because they're just normal inhabitants of this environment, this beautiful, rich environment.
And then everything turns and it becomes this story of revenge, of anger, of vengeance, and of learning for Batman to become a better man, and then for the Joker, he loses everything, and he doesn't see the light at the end of the tunnel. He just sees darkness.
"Use That Pain To Be A Superhero..."
Horacio Garcia Rojas: [Batman] understands you need to release this pain...rebuild that pain and use that pain to be a superhero, to save my own people, because during the threat of the people who came from the other part of the sea.
So there's a big threat for the new Gotham, that is Mexico. It's a character as well as Gotham City. So I think that origin stories are great, and they fit perfect to the lore of DC Comics.
Altering The Classic Batman Story
"There Is No Gotham And There Are No Waynes..."
- Question: "How did you approach creating a Batman story set in the Aztec Empire?"
Horacio Garcia Rojas: There is no Gotham and there are no Waynes....How do we create characters? And so, like you said, the first 45 minutes is us telling the human story of a kid losing his dad to the conquistadors and wants to have vengeance, but realizes the mantle of becoming a defender of a culture himself.
"Having The Opportunity To Combine The Two That Would Just Make An Amazing Story..."
Juan Meza-Leon: Me, as a Batman fan, and growing up in Mexico, Aztex the asset culture, just having the opportunity to combine the two that would just make an amazing story. It just from that fact alone, it's like, 'Oh, my God, why not?'
That's something that has never been done before, and if we can do it in a way where we can set the story in a very visceral manner and make it part of the history of the conquest of America...We tried to showcase very distinctive historical moments that happened through that conflict, like when they first arrived, when they get to the city, the first massacre. All these little story points really did influence the creation of our Batman.
"How A Young Aztec Boy Becomes The Aztec Dark Knight..."
Ernie Altbacker: I've never worked very closely with the director before. I think it shows in in the depth of the project and all of those historical markers that we have, kind of the framework that the whole story resides in, how a young Aztec boy becomes the Aztec Dark Knight, that's the main through line of the story that we're telling.
Beyond this version of Batman and Joker, Aztec Batman also includes a new take on Catwoman, which was recently highlighted in the official trailer.
The entire set of interviews from San Diego Comic-Con 2025 can be seen below:
