Up until recently, the idea of Michael Keaton returning as Batman would have sounded ludicrous. The 71-year-old actor hadn’t played the role since 1992’s Batman Returns, he’d sent up the whole superhero experience in Birdman, and had made himself a home in the MCU as the Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming.
After a false start with the canceled Batgirl he’s back in style, though, kicking ass in The Flash trailer like never before. After the mountain of bad press about Ezra Miller, Warner Bros. seem to have centered the movie’s marketing campaign around his long-awaited comeback, and the hype machine is vibrating with positive energy.
Now, we have what appears to be a new image of Keaton as Bruce Wayne, and it’s looking like he’s going to bring the intensity:
The only wrinkle is that nobody seems to know where this image originates from. The original poster insists that it’s from “the theatrical version of the trailer,” though we haven’t heard anything about this so can’t confirm. Our take is that this is a fan-made fake, albeit a very good one as it’s taken the time to put a Wayne Enterprises logo on Bruce’s jumpsuit.
If it is a fake, it’s impressive, and we’d be happy to be proved wrong if and when this mysterious alternative trailer ever appears. Whatever the case, Keaton has given The Flash a shot in the arm, so much so that fans are grousing that the Scarlet Speedster’s first solo movie seems to be a new Batman flick in all but name.
If there really is a new The Flash trailer out there, we’ll do some digging and find it.
The Flash hits theaters on Jun. 15.