Yesterday brought some extremely exciting and unexpected news for DC fans, as Michael Keaton is said to be in talks with Warner Bros. to reprise his role as Batman in multiple upcoming DCEU movies, starting with The Flash. Fans have been calling for the actor, who originally played the Dark Knight in 1989’s Batman and 1992’s Batman Returns, to come back to portray an older Bruce Wayne for years now, and it seems it might actually be about to happen.
But how could Keaton look as a grizzled, retired version of Gotham’s protector? Well, this epic artwork from BossLogic might give us a clue. The digital artist has imagined a scene where Keaton, decked out in a white hairpiece, is sitting in Wayne Manor reading The Central City Citizen, in which the headline tells us the Flash is missing. Note the classic Batman costume on display in the background.
As well as the Batman ’89 easter eggs, this artwork also squeezes in a reference to The CW’s Flash, with the newspaper a match for the one that featured heavily in the show’s first six seasons. This connection is important, too, as it’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” which established that the DCEU and the Tim Burton Batman universe take place in the same multiverse.
Ezra Miller’s Scarlet Speedster will be facing his own crisis in The Flash movie, which is believed to be adapting Flashpoint. According to The Wrap, when Barry Allen changes reality, as per the comics storyline, he’ll create a new universe that’s protected by Keaton’s Caped Crusader. This will wipe Batman Forever and Batman & Robin from continuity and reveal what the hero’s been up to since defeating the Penguin in Returns.
It’s important to note that talks are still ongoing, and Keaton has yet to officially sign up for The Flash, but there’s a very good chance that his Batman will return.