Michael Keaton recently spoke with The Hollywood Reporter’s Rebecca Keegan in a cover story interview about the upcoming films The Flash and Morbius.
The beloved actor’s return to the cape and cowl as The Dark Knight has had fans on the edge of their seats since his casting was confirmed, and their deep admiration has had a serious impact on the actor.
What’s really interesting is how much more I got [Batman] when I went back and did him. I get this on a whole other level now. I totally respect it. I respect what people are trying to make. I never looked at it like, ‘Oh, this is just a silly thing.’ It was not a silly thing when I did Batman. But it has become a giant thing, culturally. It’s iconic. So I have even more respect for it because what do I know? This is a big deal in the world to people. You’ve got to honor that and be respectful of that. Even I go, ‘Jesus, this is huge.’ “
-Michael Keaton
MICHAEL KEATON IS BACK AS BATMAN IN THE FLASH
Rumors have indicated that Michael Keaton’s Batman will be an active part of the DC Extended Universe after The Flash. The actor’s comments above certainly indicate a desire to portray Gotham’s protector for years to come. Keaton’s role in Andy Muschietti’s The Flash will mark his first time suiting up in decades.
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Michael Keaton originally portrayed Bruce Wayne/Batman in Tim Burton’s 1989 classic, Batman, before returning to the role in Burton’s sequel, Batman Returns. He ultimately stepped away from the third Batman film in the original franchise, Joel Schumacher’s Batman Forever, which starred Val Kilmer as Batman. Despite his great respect for the Batman franchise, Keaton is not a comic book nerd at heart.
“After the first Batman, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen an entire [comic book] movie,” Keaton says. “I just never got around to it. So you’re talking to a guy who wasn’t in the zeitgeist of that whole world. When I went down to do the Marvel things in Atlanta … It’s an entire city dedicated to Marvel … They’ll be doing Marvel movies forever. I’ll be dead, and they’ll still be doing Marvel movies.”
-Michael Keaton
MICHAEL KEATON IS A STAR FOR MARVEL AND DC
Morbius, directed by Daniel Espinosa, will feature Michael Keaton’s second appearance in a Marvel movie, after Spider-Man: Homecoming. There are rumors that he may appear in Spider-Man: No Way Home as The Vulture, but this has yet to be officially confirmed. He will costar in Morbius with Jared Leto, Matt Smith, Adria Arjona and Tyrese Gibson.
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THR’s article indicates that Morbius could take place in the greater Marvel Cinematic Universe. Furthermore, Rebecca Gibson has confirmed that Michael Keaton’s character in Morbius is The Vulture, a super-villain directly connected to The Battle Of New York and Tony Stark
When Keaton shot Morbius, a Marvel movie due from Sony in 2022 for which he reprises the Vulture role, the filmmakers started talking him through the logic of the fictional universe, referencing recent Marvel plot points. “I’m nodding like I know what the fuck they’re talking about. I go, ‘Uh-huh.’ And I’m thinking, ‘You may as well be explaining quantum physics right now to me. All I know is I just know my guy. And I know the basics.’ So finally, they were looking at me, and they just started laughing. They said, ‘You don’t know what we’re talking about, do you?’ I said, ‘No, I don’t, no idea what you’re talking about.’ “
-Michael Keaton
MICHEAL KEATON IS BACK AS THE VULTURE IN MORBIUS
Michael Keaton’s confusion makes a lot of sense, because those aforementioned “…recent Marvel plot points” could mean three different things. The Morbius team could have been explaining the events of Venom or Venom: Let There Be Carnage to the actor, neither of which he would have seen. They could have been explaining Spider-Man’s arc in the MCU since Spider-Man: Homecoming, which he wouldn’t be familiar with. The third possibility is that they were explaining the multiversal events of Loki and the upcoming Spider-Man: No Way Home.
To someone not deeply versed in comic book movie lore, engaging with those stories may be a challenging task. The ambiguity of the connection’s between Morbius and the MCU and the Sony Picture’s Universe of Marvel Characters only adds to the confusion. With the multiversal developments continuing in December’s No Way Home, weeks before January’s Morbius, who knows how Vulture gets tied up in Jared Leto’s mess.
Unfortunately for Michael Keaton, the multiversal expansion happens to be a war on two fronts, as DC is getting their foot in the door with The Flash. In the upcoming movie, Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen will explore different realities, like the one Keaton’s Batman calls home. The film is a very loose adaptation of the 2011 comic Flashpoint, which saw the DC Universe rebooted through The Flash’s time travel shenanigans. According to Keaton, the struggle was just as real at Warner Brothers as it had been with Sony.
MICHAEL KEATON WAS CONFUSED BY THE MULTIVERSE IN THE FLASH
“I had to read it more than three times to go, ‘Wait, how does this work? They had to explain that to me several times. By the way, I’m not being arrogant, I hope, about this. I don’t say it like, ‘I’m too groovy.’ I’m stupid. There’s a lot of things I don’t know about. And so, I don’t know, I just kind of figured it out, but this was different.”
-Michael Keaton on the multiverse in The Flash
Regardless of whether or not Michael Keaton understands the complexities of The Speed Force, Bruce Wayne will surely be able to tackle them and help The Flash in 2022. There’s a passion and a desire to perfect his work within Michael Keaton that’s quite inspiring. His perseverance in the face of convoluted comic-book material is admirable.
Hopefully the general audience will grasp the multiverse with greater ease when The Flash arrives in theaters. Are you more excited to see Michael Keaton return as Batman or The Vulture? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below or on our social media.
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Source: THR
