No, The Batman didn’t keep shooting after Robert Pattinson got COVID-19

The other day, we learned that Robert Pattinson tested positive for COVID-19 just as shooting on The Batman had resumed. What happened then?

Earlier this week, Robert Pattinson tested positive for COVID-19, and Warner Bros. shut down production on The Batman, where he plays Bruce Wayne. The movie had been shooting in the U.K. for three days after having silent for months while Warner Bros. worked to implement safety measures required by the British Film Commission.

Reports then sprung up that shooting had resumed not a day later, with director Matt Reeves filming scenes that didn’t involve Pattinson. But sources at Variety have shot this down. Some crew members are still building sets and props for the film, but everyone who came into contact with Pattinson is quarantining, and the studio is still doing contact tracing. Filming likely won’t resume until the end of the two-week quarantine period.

Adrian Wootton, chief executive of the British Film Commission and Film London, is confident the safety measures are working. “We know that productions in the U.K. are rigorously following BFC Guidance with robust health and safety procedures in place, including stringent testing regimes, which is why any case of coronavirus can be rapidly identified and appropriate self-isolating procedures implemented,” he said. “We’re confident that with all measures in place, any production will resume filming as soon as it’s safe to do so. We also believe this will not impact production overall continuing in U.K., precisely because we have such robust health and safety measures operating, enabling our world-class film and high-end TV sector to get back up and running.”

At the same time, you wonder how effective these measures can really be if something like this can happen so soon after filming had started up again. And the stop-and-start style of filming under COVID can’t be easy on the studio’s bottom line, since most insurers are making sure their policies don’t cover coronavirus outbreaks.

However The Batman outbreak happened, we hope Pattinson and the rest of the cast and crew recover quickly, and fully.

To stay up to date on everything fantasy, science fiction, and WiC, follow our all-encompassing Facebook page and sign up for our exclusive newsletter.

Get HBO, Starz, Showtime and MORE for FREE with a no-risk, 7-day free trial of Amazon Channels