Written By Kieran Bugg and Mikey Sutton • Editor-in-Chief • Owner
Michael Keaton‘s Batman hit the rumor mill again, this time about possibly appearing in the Blue Beetle film. Last year, Michael Keaton seemed to be everywhere in DC movies.
After all, he signed on for Batgirl.
Then Warner Bros. Discovery shelved it for not being worthy of theatrical release. Unlike Shazam! Fury of the Gods. Which critics bashed and lost over $100 million for the studio because of its countless empty seats.
Several media outlets reported he was to appear in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. Only to be replaced by Ben Affleck’s Batman. Then James Gunn became the co-CEO of DC Studios and decided to reboot everything.
Michael Keaton In Blue Beetle? Latest Rumors Ignite Speculation
Image: Warner Bros. Discovery
Even Michael Keaton’s future in Batman Beyond was tossed aside.
At this point, Michael Keaton must’ve felt like an unwanted stepchild.
Recently, Michael Keaton’s Batman is rumored to have a cameo appearance in Blue Beetle. The confusion over at DC Studios continues with this latest gossip. Blue Beetle’s first trailer was recently released online; overall, it looks like it’ll be an enjoyable ride at the movies.
Cobra Kai‘s Xolo Maridueña has already convinced fans that he was the best choice to bring Jaime Reyes to the big screen. The action sequences and special effects look top-notch. Moreover, the trailer was jam-packed with Easter Eggs and references to the wider DC Universe.
In addition to Ted Kord and Dan Garrett’s classic Blue Beetle suits, another popular DC superhero was directly mentioned. While admiring what looks to be his predecessor’s secret lair, Jaime Reyes says:
“It’s like Batman’s stuff.”
To which his uncle responds with a rather peculiar accusation:
“Batman’s a fascist!”
Thus, this comment has reignited an old rumor that Batman will have a cameo appearance in Blue Beetle. During an interview in November 2022, George Lopez, who portrays Reyes’ uncle in Blue Beetle, dropped a potentially huge spoiler.
He said:
“I think Batman is in our movie.”
Prior to Discovery’s merger with Warner Bros., the plan was to have Michael Keaton’s Batman play a Nick Fury role. Before Batgirl was scrapped, Keaton’s Batman was set to appear as a mentor to Leslie Grace’s Barbara Gordon. Nonetheless, I wouldn’t get your hopes up on Batman actually showing up in Blue Beetle.
These plans have likely been scrapped following the formation of DC Studios under Gunn and his DC Studios partner Peter Safran. YouTube personality and top DC scooper Syl Abdul recently spoke out on this.
According to Abdul, the Batman name drop was purely name recognition.
Via his YouTube channel, he explained:
“It appears them just saying Batman in the trailer is just for name recognition, just showing ‘hey this is part of the DC world!’ to the general audience. You know we have a Batman so you should be excited that this is somehow connected. I’m hearing there hasn’t been anything shot to show a Batman.”
Michael Keaton In Blue Beetle? Latest Rumors Ignite Speculation
Image: Warner Bros. Discovery
At this point it’s still not clear if Blue Beetle will be canon to Gunn’s new DCU. If it’s a box-office success, insiders tell us the picture has no ties to the DCEU; therefore, Gunn can easily make it fit within his new continuity. In other words, Blue Beetle could show up somewhere in Gunn’s slate. In the comics, Blue Beetle and Booster Gold are BFFs. The upcoming Booster Gold project smacks of destiny. However, that Blue Beetle has always been the Kord version.
If Batman were to appear in Blue Beetle then that would raise a completely different question.
Which version? Ben Affleck or Michael Keaton?
With the way DC is being handled right now it may as well be George Clooney.