IMDb/Warner Bros.
Michael Keaton last wore the Batman costume in 1992’s Batman Returns, the sequel to Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman. Only after 30 years did he make a comeback as the Caped Crusader in The Flash, something he previously declared he would never do unless there was a solid reason to do so.
Even though Michael Keaton helped define Batman for an entire generation, when it comes to watching his masterpiece, he turns back. Yes, Keaton told Variety, “I know people don’t believe this, that I’ve never seen an entire version of any of those movies — any Marvel movie, any other. And I don’t say that I don’t watch that because I’m highbrow — trust me! It’s not that,” he explains.
“It’s just that there’s very little things I watch. I start watching something, and think it is great and I watch three episodes, but I have other s— to do!”
Because of this, Michael Keaton’s comeback in The Flash had become all the more intriguing in 2023. More than 30 years had passed since Batman Returns hit theaters in 1992, and fans never expected to see Keaton in the cape anymore.
When asked why he decided to be a part of the Superhero film, his answer was surprisingly simple. “It seemed like fun,” he said during the Variety interview. “I was curious what it would be like after this many years. Not so much me doing it — obviously, some of that — but I was just curious about it, weirdly, socially.”
He looks at the entire superhero universe as if he were looking at a newly discovered planet.
Despite the Bat-verse’s constant reboots and dark tones, Keaton’s version has remained clean, sleek, and uncompromising in its stylization. When reminded that Batman has evolved significantly since his portrayal, he smiled and responded, “Not mine.”
Keaton has an indisputable cool quality about him. He is not fixated on the legacy. He simply shows up, completes the task, and leaves. That’s the most Batman thing ever, somehow.