UPDATE: Brooks Barnes has added more context saying:
Been offline (moving apartments) and return to see this Michael Keaton craziness. I was referring to the *one film* that Keaton has been announced as being in, not a set of his own Batman films. If I had info on him beyond “The Flash,” I would have obviously put it in my article
Been offline (moving apartments) and return to see this Michael Keaton craziness. I was referring to the *one film* that Keaton has been announced as being in, not a set of his own Batman films. If I had info on him beyond "The Flash," I would have obviously put it in my article
— Brooks Barnes (@brooksbarnesNYT) January 5, 2021
Original article follows.
Michael Keaton is slated to return to the role of Batman in the upcoming The Flash movie, but could he be sticking around for a bit more than that?
Reports surfaced last year of Keaton joining the cast of The Flash alongside a return of Ben Affleck to the role of Batman. While Keaton still won’t confirm the reports, it’s one of the worst kept secrets in movies at the moment. But now it appears that he may be around for a few more spins in the Batmobile.
In a recent profile on Warner Bros. head Walter Hamada, New York Times writer Brooks Barnes said, “Coming up, for instance, Warner Bros. will have two different film sagas involving Batman — played by two different actors — running at the same time.” At the time, that left things a bit vague, but thanks to a question from a fan over the holiday weekend, we may have a bit more clarity.
Keaton
— Brooks Barnes (@brooksbarnesNYT) January 2, 2021
This is still open to interpretation. It could mean Keaton showing up in multiple films the way Samuel L. Jackson has as Nick Fury in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or it may mean a film of his own where he plays a mentor style role. This has led some to assume that a Batman Beyond film is in the works, but that’s pure speculation at this point.
We just don’t know as of yet.
There is still a lot of time for this to be ironed out and a road map to be figured out. The Flash is currently scheduled to hit theaters on Nov. 4, 2022, and since that would be the introduction of the multiverse, it will be a while before we see the fruits of this plan.
With Robert Pattinson starring as a younger Batman in Matt Reeves’ film, and the possibility of Keaton playing the senior statesman, we may be in for a lot of new Batman material on the horizon.
