The Flash is out and it has brought back some of the most unexpected cameos bringing back several DC characters from the past. As the return of Michael Keaton’s iconic Batman was already known to the fans, the movie also pulled off a bunch of other surprise appearances. The 2023 movie ended with a very shocking twist bringing back one of the most controversial DC stars.
Major Spoilers for The Flash Ahead!
At the end of The Flash, the fans were shocked to spot George Clooney returning to his role of Bruce Wayne. The actor helmed the role once before in 1997’s Batman & Robin which ended up being George Clooney’s worst nightmare. As the actor’s back in the role once again, reports state that making his return was one of the hardest tasks to pull off.
How was George Clooney convinced to return for The Flash?
George Clooney had a very bad experience in the superhero universe when he starred as the Caped Crusader in the 1997 Joel Schumacher directorial. Batman & Robin is counted as one of the worst movies ever and even made the Ocean’s 11 star regret his life choices later.
The Flash already had not one but two Batmen in its cast. But the rumors mill stated for a long time that we might spot another version of Batman other than Ben Affleck and Michael Keaton. As Barry Allen saves his father and thinks that he has fixed up all the mess he created by traveling back in time, the movie presented another twist. In this universe, George Clooney’s Bruce Wayne shows up instead of Affleck’s and that’s where the movie saw its end.
As per a recent report by The Hollywood Reporter, Clooney’s return happened at the last stages of the film’s development and didn’t take place before January this year. The director Andy Muschietti made three endings for the movie under three different regimes with the latest one being finalized after James Gunn was brought in to form the new DCU. The 62-year-old actor also watched the movie before agreeing to return.
But the cameo at the end of the Ezra Miller movie also confused the fans who are scratching their heads over the future of the superhero in the future of DCU.
Is George Clooney the new DCU Batman?
It was stated by James Gunn from the very beginning of his DC reign that his soft reboot will show a new Batman in the upcoming Batman: The Brave and the Bold. Robert Pattinson’s Batman will exist separately in the Elseworlds universe and will not coincide with the main DCU storyline.
Amidst all this, the fans thought that George Clooney’s Batman can be the new Dark Knight for Gunn’s universe. But the co-CEO addressed the rumor of Clooney’s Batman long ago and debunked them, stating that a fresh face will be brought in for the role.
Absolutely not.
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) February 11, 2023
So it can be presumed that 1997 Bruce Wayne’s return was nothing but a last-minute shocker and we will soon come to know about our new Batman. Although the upcoming movie is slated to have an older version of the superhero than what we have seen in the past and George Clooney somehow fitted into the setup, James Gunn is most likely to have a different path.
The Flash is running in theaters near you.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
