Well here’s one that took pretty much everyone by surprise. According to reports, Michael Keaton is in early discussions with Warner Bros. to return as Batman in the upcoming Flash movie starring Ezra Miller.
From a scoop via The Wrap and quickly corroborated by the trades, Keaton would reprise his iteration of the Dark Knight, last seen on the big screen in 1992’s Batman Returns, possibly across a multi-film mentor role similar to Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Talks are reportedly only in early stages for his return in The Flash, which will take plot cues from the DC’s groundbreaking Flashpoint comic book storyline.
Incorporating alternate timeline elements of Flashpoint into the big screen Flash screenplay easily allows WB to do a soft reboot of the DC film slate. In this case Barry Allen would travel back in time via the Speed Force to save his mother’s life, creating a multiverse alternate future where Keaton’s Batman, now 30 years older, is the guardian of Gotham.
In the comics version (and the animated adaptation as well), it is Bruce Wayne’s father Thomas was took on the mantle of Batman in the alternate timeline Flash returned to. Rampant speculative fan casting pointed to Jeffery Dean Morgan, who played Thomas Wayne in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, as the actor theoretically best to reprise that role in the Flashpoint-adjusted DC Movie timeline (and slide into the Bat position vacated by Ben Affleck’s version). It now looks like that particular possibility has been pretty much scrapped in favor of bringing back the iconic familiar version from Tim Burton’s two films, and ignoring the third and fourth entries in that series.
DC’s multiverse concept was previously utilized in the Warner Bros. Television shows currently airing on The CW. During the most recent crossover event, an adaptation of 1985’s iconic Crisis on Infinite Earths storyline, not only did the characters from the multiple Arrowverse shows cross worlds and interact as they have in the past, the producers also included DC characters outside of that continuity. Cameos included the Flash (John Wesley Shipp) from the 90’s CBS Flash show, Robin (Burt Ward) from the 60’s Batman series, and Superman (Brandon Routh) from Superman Returns (thus linking the DC movies to the DC television shows).
But it’s two particular cameos that really teed up the multiverse concept taking place in The Flash.
During the first installment of the Crisis crossover, Robert Whul reprised his role of reporter Alexander Knox from 1989’s Batman in a scene complete with Danny Elfman’s iconic score in the background. This firmly put the Tim Burton installments right into this larger DC multiverse. At least to television viewers.
In a well kept secret scene revealed up to when it was aired, the TV Flash met the current big screen Flash in a quick meet up that paired Grant Gustin and Ezra Miller, and expanded DC’s multiverse even further to include the current run of DC big screen adventures.
That said, it now seems any character in any live action adaption of any DC property is fair game to cross over with any other character whether it be in movies or television. Even the conclusion of TV’s Crisis on Infinite Earths was left open ended enough to allow The Flash to continue to cross worlds and meet Keaton’s Batman.
HOWEVER, all reports of this fantastic movie news make note that Keaton is in “early talks,” so this pop culture dream come true could crash and burn at any time. But bringing Keaton back and merging him into the mix via the DC multiverse works rock solid for this and endless other potential financial lucrative crossovers for Warner Bros.
SOURCES: The Wrap, The Hollywood Reporter, Deadline
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