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The Flash Proves Michael Keaton’s Batman Beyond Never Should Have Been Canceled – Looper

Contains spoilers for “The Flash”

DC Studios really dropped the ball with Michael Keaton.

No, we’re not talking about “The Flash.” That was a major score. For years, superhero fans have been salivating over Keaton’s return as the man, the myth, the bat himself in DC’s big reboot movie. The marketing has always leaned heavily on his presence, featuring everything from his iconic costume to his honest-to-Gotham Batwing. And while this was done, at least partly, to engage fans who might otherwise be concerned about financially supporting the film’s other leading actor, there’s also no doubting that focusing on Keaton is a smart choice. Because, frankly, Keaton is Keaton. He never disappoints. 

Which is why it is so disappointing to know that DC Studios reportedly axed two other productions with Keaton attached. Obviously, there was “Batgirl,” a finished product that Warner Bros. CEO David Zaslav notoriously trashed for a tax cut. But there was another one that never saw a camera, let alone a complete cast, and only barely even a script … because sadly, believe or not, DC Studios scrapped a live-action adaption of “Batman Beyond.”  

Maybe you knew this. Maybe you’re only now hearing it for the first time. If you’re currently wailing or gnashing your teeth at the loss of what could have been, that’s totally justified. Apparently, the decision came straight from James Gunn and Peter Safran as part of their plan to save the DCU, and while it makes sense from a logical standpoint, it’s still tragic to find out that such a perfect sendoff for Keaton’s Batman — and a great story in its own right — was taken away from us at the very last second. 

Batman Beyond could someday make a great movie, but Michael Keaton’s Bruce Wayne would’ve made it shine

Warner Bros. Television Animation

For those who might not know, “Batman Beyond” was an animated series that formed a key part of the DC Animated Universe timeline: yes, the very same collection of cartoons that features “Batman: The Animated Series” and “Justice League,” and if that isn’t a determinant of quality, then literally nothing is. In broad strokes, “Batman Beyond” tells the story of Terry McGinnis, who takes over the mantle of Batman after an aging Bruce Wayne finally gives up the cowl. To give you an idea as to how intense this series is, Bruce’s reason for finally retiring from vigilantism is that a combination of old age and heart failure forced him to threaten a violent criminal with a gun. 

Even casual fans know that Batman doesn’t mess with guns. That’s his whole thing. So, old man Bruce Wayne finally steps down, but not really, because he becomes Terry’s mentor. The former teaches the latter how to be a superhero and the latter teaches the former how to be a human being again. Set that to a cyberpunk backdrop, and you’ve got “Batman Beyond.” 

Now, a “Batman Beyond” movie could be great with a variety of Bruce Wayne actors. But Keaton’s Bruce Wayne? That would’ve been absolute perfection. Can you imagine the performance Michael Keaton would deliver in a live-action adaptation as this curmudgeonly, decrepit Batman who sank beneath his unflappable moral code and despises himself for it? Can you imagine what it would really be like to see Bruce accept defeat? 

Because DC Studios can, and “The Flash” is counting on it. 

Why is Michael Keaton playing Bruce Wayne again?

DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures

While “The Flash” is technically based on the comic book storyline “Flashpoint,” there are some notable liberties taken with the source material. We’ve mentioned that Michael Keaton is returning to the role of Batman, but we haven’t mentioned that he’s also returning to the role of Bruce Wayne, which is important because Bruce isn’t in the comic book version of this story. On the page, the version of Batman that the Flash encounters is actually Thomas Wayne, Bruce’s father, who exists in a timeline where Bruce was shot instead. The narrative impact of this is that Barry Allen is forced to realize how his meddling with time changed things for everyone, not just himself. 

But that’s not how DC Studios is running with it. By making Keaton portray Bruce in the role of the Thomas Wayne Batman, with some adjustments so that he also takes a similar mentorship role for Barry that Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) filled for Peter Parker (Tom Holland) in the MCU, DC Studios has clearly folded aspects of “Batman Beyond” into “The Flash.”

And that might be why the development for Keaton’s solo film got axed. 

How the Flash (sort of) became Batman Beyond

DC Studios/Warner Bros. Pictures

At first glance, that might seem like an unfair accusation, what with all of the Robins and Batgirls and other children that Batman adopts. But Barry Allen is closer to Terry McGinnis than he is to Dick Grayson. By the time Bruce Wayne comes into Barry’s life, Barry’s already a little bit older, more stubborn-minded, and painfully sarcastic. That’s categorically Terry, folks. And for everyone who noticed that Alternate Barry is wearing a repurposed Batsuit, that’s another Terry original. In “Batman Beyond,” Terry steals Batman’s costume for his first excursion as a vigilante. Oh, and Terry’s whole story centralizes his love for his family. Specifically, a love for his mother. Does that ring any Flash-related bells? Terry’s mother might still be alive in a way that Barry’s mother isn’t, but the connection here is that they are both unapologetically momma’s boys. 

Here’s what we’re getting at. It’s believed that James Gunn and Peter Safran canned the “Batman Beyond” project because it didn’t gel with their reboot plans — not to mention that it would introduce another Batman into an actively oversaturated bat market — but maybe it was canned because it was too close in structure to what “The Flash” needed to be. And since Barry’s solo film has become the single most narratively significant building block in the DCU’s total retcon, perhaps it was decided that “Batman Beyond” would just feel repetitive. 

Could a Batman Beyond movie still happen?

Warner Bros. Television Animation

This leaves the question, then, of whether it is still possible for a live-action “Batman Beyond” adaptation to enter the DCU. The answer is a resounding yes, but with a hummer-sized caveat — Michael Keaton probably won’t be attached for a second time around. And that’s a huge loss.

Provided that James Gunn and Peter Safran manage to keep a steady continuity running, the Bruce Wayne of a future “Batman Beyond” will most likely be whoever debuts in the role in “The Brave and the Bold.” And that would come attached with a few implications, such as any version of “Batman Beyond” needing to exist much further down the timeline, if only for the sake of the actor’s actual age — not to mention, the age of his co-stars. Because, truthfully, “Batman Beyond” is heavily populated with older incarnations of established characters, and for their impact to work on the big screen, these need to be versions of the characters that people recognize. In the animated series, for instance, Commissioner Barbara Gordon is compelling because we knew her in “Batman: The Animated Series” as Batgirl. This conceit would’ve worked with the Tim Burton universe, but for a DCU version, we’ll need to wait a much longer time. 

For Keaton to get his chance at “Batman Beyond,” Gunn and Safran would have to permit the project to exist as part of Elseworlds, a non-canonical entity, like Matt Reeves’ “The Batman” or Todd Philip’s “The Joker.” And that’s just not a likely course of events, considering there are already two Elseworlds Batman franchises out there. 

But it would have been good. No, it would have been great, and we’ll just have to vicariously appreciate that truth by watching Keaton in “The Flash.”