The Michael KeatonBatmanmovies have led to numerous sequel and spinoff properties, taking place in as many as 4 different DC Universes. Critically, commercially, and culturally, 1989’sBatmanwas a huge success for DC and Warner Bros, cementing itself as a pop culture phenomenon and leaving a lasting impact on how major blockbuster films are marketed. The film’s 1992 sequel,Batman Returns, did not reach the same soaring heights as its predecessor, at least initially.Returnswas a controversial film whose violent and sexual content – and significant deviations from theBatmancomic source material – offended many viewers.
Batman Returnsdoes hold up in many regards, however, especially with viewers looking back with fresh eyes, appreciating thelive-action Batman movieand its bold choices and aesthetic qualities. Even with the film’s initial controversy, it was hardly the end of the original franchise. The story of Michael Keaton’s Batman continued in a variety of properties, with many taking place in separate universes and 1989’sBatmanandBatman Returnsbeing overlapping canon. Alternate timelines and overlapping continuity are common in superhero fiction, but each of the different Michael KeatonBatmanuniverses has a different and fascinating reason for existing.
Every Batman Actor, Ranked Silliest To Darkest
Live-action portrayals of Batman range from silly and lighthearted, like Adam West, to dark and serious, like Christian Bale and Robert Pattinson.
Joel Schumacher’s Batman Movies Were The Original Sequels
The controversial reception toBatman Returnsled Warner Bros to take theBatmanfilms in a more family-friendly direction, and thus Joel Schumacher replaced Tim Burton. Schumacher’s two films –Batman ForeverandBatman & Robin– are arguably more comic-accurate than Burton’s films, but their more lighthearted tones and intentional camp resulted in poorer receptions than the Burton duology. The Schumacher films drastically reimagined Gotham City as a brighter and more futuristic setting, Michael Keaton was replaced with Val Kilmer (and later George Clooney) as Batman, and Billy Dee Williams was replaced by Tommy Lee Jones as Two-Face.
Despite this,the Schumacher films are sequels to Burton’s movies. Michael Gough and Pat Hingle reprise their roles as Alfred Pennyworth and Commissioner Gordon, respectively, and there are even some continuity nods. InBatman Forever, Dr. Chase Meridian references Catwoman, and Bruce Wayne’s warnings to Dick Grayson against killing Two-Face allude to him killing The Joker. Alfred’s joke about the Batmobile inBatman & Robinmay also reference Batman’s vehicles being destroyed in the Burton films.A canceled fifth film –Batman Triumphant– would have seen the villains of both the Burton and Schumacher films appear as Fear Toxin-induced hallucinations.
Batman ‘89 Comics Are Closer To The Keaton Batman Films
2021 saw the release of theBatman ’89comics by Sam Hamm and Joe Quinones, and whilethey are not part of the same universe as Joel Schumacher’sBatmanmovies, they also follow up on the events of 1989’sBatmanandBatman Returns. Sam Hamm wrote the script for 1989’sBatmanand the original story treatment forBatman Returns(despite it being replaced with a drastically different narrative by Daniel Waters), making him an ideal writer forBatman ’89, which is a far more direct continuation of the events and characterizations of the Burton films.
Everything That Happened To Harvey Dent After Tim Burton’s Batman
Billy Dee Williams was set to play both Harvey Dent and Two-Face in 1989’s Batman, but what happened to his character after Tim Burton’s films?
Batman ’89makes constant nods and references to the Burton filmsand develops characters like Bruce Wayne and Commissioner Gordon accordingly. Harvey Dent – who retains the likeness of Billy Dee Williams – becomes a significantly different Two-Face thanBatman Forever’sversion.Batman ’89also introduces a new version of Robin (now the original character Drake Winston), using Marlon Wayans’ likeness as a nod to Wayans nearly playing the Boy Wonder inBatman Returns.Batman ’89is tailor-made for those who perhaps wish to see what hypotheticalBatmansequels would look like if they were still being directed by Tim Burton.
The Flash Almost Made Keaton’s Batman Part Of The DCEU’s Future
Michael Keaton himself returned to the Batman role, this time in the DC Extended Universe filmThe Flash. The movie is a loose adaptation of theFlashpointcomic storyline, in which Barry Allen accidentally creates a different timeline by traveling back in time and saving his mother’s life.In the DCEU, this new timeline appears to be a hybrid of the main universe and the BurtonBatmantimeline, with Keaton’s Batman replacing Ben Affleck’s iteration. In this DCEU Flashpoint universe, the events of 1989’sBatman,Batman Returns, and perhaps even theBatman ‘89comics all occurred years ago.
The Flashends with Keaton’s Batman dying in battle against General Zod’s Kryptonian extremists and then having his timeline erased when Barry Allen repairs the timeline. Fascinatingly,The Flashwas initially going to end with the DCEU remaining a hybrid of the pre-Flashpoint timeline and the BurtonBatmanuniverse. With Ben Affleck stepping down from the Batman role, Keaton would have replaced him as the DCEU’s Batman andsome of the Burton-era lore would carry over into the new post-Flashpoint DCEU. Ultimately, these plans were scrapped and the DCEU would be partially rebooted into theupcoming DC Universe.
The canceledBatgirlfilm would have taken place in this post-Flashpoint DCEU, with Keaton reprising his role as Batman once again.
Batman: Resurrection Continues The Story From Batman ‘89
Other continuations of the BurtonBatmanmovies are not in a clearly defined continuity. During the Arrowverse’sCrisis on Infinite Earthstelevision event, a BurtonBatmanuniverse appears, with a newspaper headline revealing that The Joker (seemingly having returned from the dead) has been captured by Batman. Michael Keaton’s Batman andJack Nicholson’s Jokerhave similarly appeared in recent DC comics, with the first issue ofDark Crisis: Big Bangbeing one notable example. While these properties seemingly branch off from the Burton films, it is not clear if they inhabit the same continuity asBatman ’89, for instance.
John Jackson Miller’s novelBatman: Resurrectionwill be released in October 2024, and will be set between the events of 1989’sBatmanandBatman Returns. As an interquel,Resurrectionwill most likely not reference, let alone contradict, the established characters or lore of the Schumacher films or theBatman ’89comics, as it may be more focused on bridging the stories of the two Burton films. This might allowResurrectionto inhabit all of the branchingBatmantimelines, making it a third instance of overlapping continuity between the original two Michael KeatonBatmanmovies and their various sequels.
