Tag: Harley Quinn

Michael Keaton May Return as Batman Alongside Ezra Miller’s Flash. Wait, What??

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The Wrap – After nearly 30 years, Michael Keaton is in talks to return to the role of Batman, to appear alongside Ezra Miller in Warner Bros.’ upcoming movie “The Flash,” TheWrap has learned exclusively. Talks with Keaton are in the very early stages, it is far from a sure thing, and can go either way. No details are currently available about how big or small Keaton’s role is.

That plot will introduce general audiences to the idea of the multiverse, one of the of core concepts underpinning DC Comics. For the non fanboy set, the multiverse refers to a shifting number of alternate universes that coexist within the larger reality depicted in DC comics. Originally created to explain various contradictory changes the company’s characters experienced over decades, it allows several different versions of the same characters to simultaneously exist and, occasionally, interact. Matt Reeves upcoming “The Batman” will not be affected and Robert Pattinson’s Bruce Wayne is still viewed as the future of the franchise.

In my head I imagine the head of the DC Comics movie studio as a high school kid just inhaling Adderall and Mountain Dew because these movies are ALL over the place. Ben Affleck is the Batfleck! Batfleck is writing and directing a standalone film! Batfleck retired! Robert Pattinson is now Batman! Hey what about bringing back 1989 Batman Michael Keaton to star alongside Ezra Miller, who literally just played the Flash next to Affleck’s Batman in two movies!

Before the fanboys jump down my throat, yes I understand the concept of the multiverse. I watched an episode of the Crisis on Infinite Earths episode just to see my dude Tom Welling reprise his role in Smallville one more time. It was a disappointingly short 90 seconds of screen time for the old WB’s Clark Kent, but that disappointment gave way to a crying fit of laughter when I saw who they had playing Lex Luthor.

What, was Michael Rosenbaum busy with a set at the Comedy Store that night? Ah, but I digress.

I think the entire concept of the multiverse (which not surprisingly was originally introduced to cover up inconsistencies over the years) opens up a world of possibilities. But its hard to feel good about anything DC does these days because they’ve already mucked up so many movies and planned universes. With that being said a multiverse allows DC to punt on the idea of a shared universe across multiple movies like Marvel and focus on self contained stories while plugging and playing our favorite characters and actors without the need to explain a ton of backstory. Whether that works with an audience outside of a hardcore comics fanbase is unclear, but I know I’d be pumped to see Ryan Reynolds’ Green Lantern pop into a movie with Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn as it’s revealed that The Joker is actually Mark Hammil’s version. Thats basically a 10 year old’s dream, just mixing and matching whatever toys you have and mashing em all together.

Or really any reason at all to bring my girl and Smallville legend Kristen Kreuk out of the Disney Vault.

But if we wanna get nuts then lets get nuts and do the Batman Beyond movie with Keaton as the old Bat.

Now THAT is a movie that would put asses in seats. I’d like to say Pattinson’s movie and this multiverse news with Keaton are just a giant smokescreen to distract us from a Batman Beyond movie secretly in the works, but I think that is giving the DCEU far too much credit. I’ve already written thousands of words about this nerdgasm of a movie so I won’t go down that rabbit hole again.

Either way I am fully on board with DC just throwing shit against the wall and seeing what sticks. Oh people love Wonder Woman and Aquaman Jason Mamoa? They’re in! People hate Jared Leto and the Batfleck retired? Out! Give me the Flash and the guy that played Batman 31 years ago and maybe another out of place character to see if we can catch lightning in a bottle with the mutliverse. That or yet another DC movie bombs and Jon Taffer just shuts it down.

Granted it came out a month after I was born so I’ve only seen it once or twice and I know it was the first comic book movie to play it serious, but I was never overly fond of Batman 1989 or Jack Nicholson, as Big Jim Murray put it, playing Jack Nicholson with makeup. With that being said I’ll have to go back and give it a rewatch because it sure sounds like Keaton could be coming out of retirement to don the black cowl once again.

First Set Photos Drop from Upcoming Joaquin Phoenix Joker Movie, and Maybe There’s Hope for DC Yet

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Image result for the joker comics

For those who haven’t heard, the Clown Prince of Crime is going to get his own standalone origin movie next year, with Joaquin Phoenix set to play the lead role and Todd Phillips set to direct.

The movie isn’t scheduled to be released until October 2019, but we were already treated to a few interesting set photos this past weekend (h/t Just Jared) as well as a close-up of what a pre-Joker Joaquin Phoenix will look like:

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(His name will also apparently be “Arthur.”)

Let me just start off by saying that I am totally on board with Phoenix as the Joker. Not only is he a brilliant and extremely talented actor – seriously, he’s probably one of the very best alive at the moment – but he’s also just batshit crazy enough to pull off a performance that could actually rival Heath Ledger’s iteration of the legendary villain from The Dark Knight.

(Side note: Jared Leto has failed MISERABLY so far in the DCEU, like embarrassingly so. If you even try to defend his portrayal of the Joker in any way, you are plain wrong and we’re not going to be friends.)

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However, I’m not as sold on the director.

Todd Phillips, a guy known for making cheeky, frat-boy-humor comedies like Road Trip, Old School, and the Hangover trilogy, is going to be in charge of building the backstory for one of the most compelling, sinister, and vicious villains in entertainment history. Though many may not like to admit it, a large part of the Joker’s ubiquitous appeal is his truly perverse, malicious, and downright sociopathic nature, and any story focused on what made him that way is going to have to be quite dark. Is Phillips up to the task?

Fortunately, Scott Silver, who wrote 8 Mile and helped write The Fighter, is helping Phillips co-write the Joker movie. Not only were both of those films pretty excellent, but they also both feature main characters who are dealing with some pretty serious personal demons and unfortunate life circumstances which ultimately end up molding them into the person they eventually become.

OK. Fine. I’ll keep the faith that the two of them together can get the job done.

It was also reported back in March (h/t Screen Rant) that the movie would indeed be an origin story, showing the Joker’s – aka Arthur Fleck’s – demise as a failed comedian and the path he ultimately took toward a life of crime. This is derived from Alan Moore’s and Brian Bolland’s 1988 classic Joker tale The Killing Joke, easily one of the most dark and macabre (and best!) Batman graphic novels of all time. The alleged theme of the film is making me hopeful that the movie will be as “super dark and real” as Brendan Schaub (h/t Batman-News) said it was going to be during an interview last summer.

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If you still haven’t read this one, do so immediately.

What makes this movie even more interesting and appealing is the fact that it is truly a “standalone.” It will not be a part of the current DCEU, which is in a state of flux at the moment, and it will instead fall under a new banner at Warner Brothers which will focus more on origin stories and other spinoffs from the universe’s main entities going forward.

Back in December 2016 (h/t Hollywood Reporter), a future Gotham City Sirens movie focusing on Harley Quinn, Catwoman, and Poison Ivy was announced. The studio has also already confirmed a Harley-Quinn-centric Birds of Prey movie, and there’s potentially even another Harley solo movie being discussed as well. Each of those films will star Margot Robbie, who was excellent as the Joker’s main gal in Suicide Squad.

Image result for margot robbie harley quinn

We love you, Margot, and fortunately Warner Bros. does, too.

They will also be making a Batgirl movie, too, which makes a lot of sense considering Barbara Gordon’s pivotal role in The Killing Joke storyline. Hopefully, we could even start to see other awesome and super underappreciated characters like Nightwing and Red Hood – and, eventually, Oracle – finally make their way onto the big screen as well.

So wait…what about Leto, though?

As much as I would love for his character to fade completely into obscurity, it seems as though Warner Brothers is still going to give him plenty more screen time. As first mentioned by The Hollywood Reporter, Leto is getting another chance to be the Joker in what looks like a weird, edgy (and probably entirely unnecessary) romantic comedy with Harley Quinn, which is set to come out after the Suicide Squad sequel. (So, wait, we now have to see him at least TWO more times??!!) Fortunately, this was reported last summer with virtual radio silence on the topic since, so here’s to hoping DC scraps the idea entirely and sticks with the other much better projects in process. For now, though, it seems like Leto’s sticking around, at least in the main DCEU.

Regardless, at least it seems as though the first Joker movie set to come out has some pretty solid potential, and I’m now actually pretty excited to see the finished product. And as confusing as all the DC movie “announcements” have been over the past year or so, at least the gears are turning over at Warner Bros. and things no longer seem quite so dire for DC.

The untitled Joker movie is officially set to hit theaters on October 4, 2019.