Tim Burton’s Batman Beyond Could Properly End Michael Keaton’s DC Story

An adaptation of Batman Beyond helmed by Tim Burton could bring Michael Keaton’s Batman arc to the end that it never got. Among the quite plentiful DC movie surprises of the past year, news broke this past summer that Michael Keaton is set to return to portray his version of Batman in The Flash movie. Ben Affleck will also return in the film as his incarnation of the Caped Crusader, with the Multiverse-spanning story of The Flash making the appearance of two different Batmen possible (some recent confusion that Keaton is replacing Affleck outright in the DCEU continuity has also been cleared up.)

Keaton’s return comes amid a major shift in how DC movies and television shows are handled via the aforementioned Multiverse angle, making it possible for properties such as the Batman films he made with Tim Burton to be revived alongside contemporary DC adaptations. By returning as Batman, Keaton has also given The Flash just the shot in the arm it’s needed after the extreme difficulties and numerous directors that it has gone through. Indeed, news of Keaton’s Batman appearing in the film has been greeted with such enthusiasm, his return clearly doesn’t need to be a simple one-and-done.

It also didn’t take long for the idea to arise that Keaton’s return could pave the way for an adaptation of the animated series Batman Beyond set in the world of his Batman films. An exciting prospect at face value whether as a movie or an HBO Max series, recruiting Tim Burton to direct would make it even better, and not just for the stylistic continuity it would have with Batman and Batman Returns. Here’s why a Tim Burton-directed Batman Beyond could give Keaton’s Batman story its final chapter.

Michael Keaton’s Flash Appearance Could Set The Stage For More

2020 has been one surprise after another for DC movies, yet few could have ever predicted that Michael Keaton would be up for a return as the Dark Knight. With Keaton last being seen in the cowl in 1992, his portrayal of Batman remains as beloved as ever and a staple of the childhoods of millions. In one fell swoop, the announcement of his return in The Flash zapped the long-stagnant project to a level of anticipation and public awareness that it’s quite possibly never seen, and so it’s well worth expanding the boundaries of conventional expectation once more.

It also wouldn’t be the first time Batman Beyond has been in some stage of development, with Warner Bros. having been developing the project in the early 2000s. Keaton’s legacy as Bruce Wayne already makes him more suited than any other Batman actor to reprise the role in an adaptation of Batman Beyond. A gap of literal decades since his last time as Bruce Wayne would make Keaton’s Batman practically tailor-made to revisited in this way. At the same time, a Tim Burton return to Gotham City could sweeten the deal even more.

Tim Burton Would Bring A Unique Feel To Batman Beyond

Though his 21st-century output hasn’t had the same impact as his early days, there’s no mistaking a Tim Burton movie for the work of anyone else. From Edward Scissorhands to Sleepy Hollow, Burton has established a very distinct style and a voice among high-profile directors, and some of his best work has been in his collaborations with Keaton on Beetlejuice and their two Batman films. When it comes to Batman specifically, Burton’s interpretation is unmistakably his own, especially in the case of Batman Returns, for which Burton was quite clearly the captain of the ship.

The German expressionist architecture of Burton’s Gotham City, in particular, made his Batman films stand the test of time, beginning as a grimy urban bog of crime in the first Batman and evolving to Burton’s signature Halloween-Christmas amalgam in Batman Returns. A straightforward take on Batman Beyond would be exciting all on its own, so what could be better than to adapt it through Burton’s universe to put a Blade Runner-style spin on the Gotham City of his Batman films? Of course, continuity is the name of the game in today’s comic book movies, and fortunately, the chips are already on the table for that, too.

DC Now Has The Freedom To Make Batman Beyond

As mentioned above, Keaton’s appearance in The Flash is to be facilitated through the movie’s Multiverse elements. With the film taking inspiration from the Flashpoint comics story, Barry Allen’s time-travel powers are to be an integral aspect of the film, and as with Ezra Miller’s appearance on Crisis On Infinite Earths, Barry traveling from one universe to another is how Keaton’s Batman will be able to appear. This also does a lot more than just allow different characters from disparate DC movies and TV shows to meet. It also makes something like Batman Beyond possible in the first place, along with effectively killing the notion of DC reboots, too.

In the same way that 2017’s Logan couldn’t properly fit into a linear franchise continuity like the Marvel Cinematic Universe (its place among the other X-Men movies is, at best, debatable), something like Batman Beyond would be incredibly difficult to make work in tandem with an established continuity like Zack Snyder’s DC films. Now that DC movies and shows essentially have carte blanche to run multiple different continuities at once by way of the Multiverse, specific comic book and animated series stories can now be realized more easily by simply setting themselves in whichever reality works best, or just being a lone wolf a la Todd Phillips’ Joker. A Batman Beyond that follows on Tim Burton’s Batman films would be totally workable, simply picking up after a long gap with Keaton’s appearance in The Flash happening in the interim. With the Batman Beyond Bruce Wayne also being a very specific interpretation, this could also give Keaton’s Batman something that he’s lacked for ages.

Batman Beyond Can Conclude Keaton’s Batman Story

Owing to the controversial reception of Batman Returns, the series moved into much lighter territory with the Joel Schumacher-directed Batman films. Looking at them in hindsight, Batman Forever was really a reboot before the term entered common use (ironically via Batman Begins a decade later), while Keaton’s appearance in The Flash is confirmed to not be connected to the Schumacher films. With Keaton having departed the role and Burton leaving the director’s chair, this means that the former’s Batman never had a true conclusion – and he now can through Batman Beyond.

With the series having focused on an elderly Bruce Wayne mentoring Terry McGinnis to become his successor, a Batman Beyond following on Keaton’s role in The Flash could bring his time as the Dark Knight to the conclusion that it never got after Batman Returns, allowing Terry McGinnis to become the new Batman of his world and Bruce to either retire altogether, or take on his rumored Nick Fury-esque role in the DCEU. Looking deeper, a Burton-directed Batman Beyond (or The Flash itself) could even address some of the loose ends left from his previous two movies, such as the long-overlooked question of how he was exonerated after being framed for murder by the Penguin in Batman Returns.

Keaton’s return as Batman in The Flash took everyone by surprise, and with the flexibility that DC’s Multiverse has brought with it, Batman Beyond makes more sense than ever now that he’s back in the game. Burton returning to direct would make it even better with the very distinctive touch he would bring to it. Above all, it would finally give Keaton’s Batman a chance to finish his story, before taking a seat behind the Batcomputer to guide his young successor through the rigors of fighting crime in the Gotham City of the future.

About The Author

Brad Curran
(716 Articles Published)

Growing up, Brad developed an innate love of movies and storytelling, and was instantly enamored with the world of adventure while following the exploits of Indiana Jones, Japanese kaiju, and superheroes. Today, Brad channels his thoughts on all manner of movies, from comic book films, sci-fi thrillers, comedies, and everything in between through his writings on Screen Rant. Brad also offers philosophical musings on martial arts and the filmographies of everyone from Jackie Chan to Donnie Yen on Kung Fu Kingdom, where he’s also had the privilege of interviewing many of the world’s great stunt professionals, and hearing plenty of gripping stories on injuries incurred in their line of work and the intricacies of designing the acts of death defiance he first thrilled to as a youngster. When he’s not writing, Brad enjoys going on a ride with the latest action hit or Netflix original, though he’s also known to just pop in “The Room” from time to time. Follow Brad on Twitter @BradCurran.

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