It’s been twenty eight years since actor Michael Keaton paired with Tim Burton at the helm for Batman Returns – sequelizing their critical and commercial 1989 inaugural box office hit, Batman. Now it appears the Need For Speed and American Assassin actor may soon reprise his incarnation of Bruce Wayne for The Flash, according to Umberto Gonzalez at The Wrap.
While nothing is official just yet, talks are underway for the actor to join the production which has Andrés Muschietti (It: Chapter Two) directing from the latest draft by Birds of Prey scribe Christina Hodson. Gonzalez writes that the potential plot for the film “will introduce general audiences to the idea of the multiverse, one of the of core concepts underpinning DC Comics.”
Of course, the setup will be the story that may follow the film to come, as the report notes:
Loosely based on the 2011 DC Comics crossover event “Flashpoint” — previously announced as the film’s title at Comic-Con 2017 — the story sees Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen travel back in time to prevent the death of his mother. The result? Allen inadvertently creates another universe protected by Michael Keaton’s Batman, now 30 years older.
Gonzalez refers to the CW network’s extensive line-up in his detailed report which elucidates the multiverse concept with examples like the Arrowverse and Crisis On Infinite Earths, as well as an episode in which actor Ezra Miller made a cameo appearance on CW’s The Flash, opposite the show’s lead, Grant Gustin.
The report also goes on to state that this could open doors for Warner Bros.’s pictures as it looks to potentially merge its characters on various film projects. In my own opinion, this could finally be the turning point that gets Keaton to play the version of Bruce Wayne that fans fawning for a Batman Beyond adaptation have been waiting for.
Miller will star in the film, following previous appearances in Zack Snyder’s Batman V. Superman: Dawn Of Justice, David Ayer’s Suicide Squad, and Justice League, the latter which is currently subject to an extended director’s cut premiering on HBO Max in 2021.
Barbara Muschietti and Michael Disco are producing the pic which shoots next year, subject to Covid-19 protocols.
Keaton abandoned the role as director Joel Schumacher took the reigns for two more between different actors wearing the cape and cowl, for the releases of Batman Forever (1995) and Batman & Robin (1997); On Monday, the franchise lost the famed director who passed away at the age of 80 (THR).
Keaton also has a stake in Sony’s Marvel ventures after 2017’s Spider-Man: Homecoming, starring Tom Holland, with Daniel Espinoza’s Morbius, opening in theaters beginning March 2021.
