Jeffrey Dean Morgan may have appeared in one of the most divisive superhero movies of all time aka Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, but he also has his own superpower when it comes to appearing in movies and shows throughout the decades – somehow he picks the best of the lot and usually ends up stealing the moment, be it as hero or villain. As for his role as Thomas Wayne in Snyderverse, one of the factors that makes him centrally important to the plot is his sacrifice that later becomes key to the origin of Bruce Wayne’s alter ego, Batman.
However, once Flash enters the scene, the inevitable Flashpoint paradox initiates a chain reaction – a ripple effect on events and incidents that change everything by creating alternate paths and new timelines where people and things no longer exist as they should be.
Also read: Bruce Wayne: Facts About The Man Behind The Mask You Never Knew
The Flash Introduces a Potential Third Batman in DCEU
The tragic origin story of Batman is a tale as old as time, but when it comes to the Flashpoint paradox, not everything is as it seems. In a universe affected by the reactionary events of the paradox, a Batman exists whose identity is not Bruce Wayne but Thomas Wayne. In that universe, it is the father who loses his son and becomes the Caped Crusader but instead of bringing justice or hope to the people of Gotham, he chooses to perpetually punish and torture those who choose evil. This Batman is crueler, more twisted, and darker than the symbol Bruce Wayne represents.
Also read: 7 Characters Who Donned The Cape Of Batman Except Bruce Wayne
The last remaining remnants of DCEU represented by the Flash treads down the path that takes him through the aftermath of the Flashpoint paradox. And as per the paradox, the timeline created by Flashpoint should understandably have Thomas Wayne’s Bat flying over the Narrows and alleyways of Gotham City. Such a world provided DC with the perfect opportunity to take Bruce Wayne out of the equation by bringing in a variant of Jeffrey Dean Morgan’s Thomas Wayne into the picture to serve as the Dark Knight.
However, even as The Flash proceeds with the Flashpoint narrative, Thomas Wayne’s absence remains the sole thing that stands out among all of the living, breathing versions of Bats to take up their mantles in their respective worlds.
The Flash Explains Thomas Wayne’s Absence in Flashpoint
Director Andy Muschietti who has carefully and patiently navigated the DCEU vehicle to its eventual finish line, has created what most have claimed to be the best superhero movie of all time. However, before the audience and the critics decide on a unanimous vote, The Flash is already breaking new ground by shifting away from the predetermined path set by the Flashpoint comics. One of those paths includes the highly anticipated return of Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Thomas Wayne aka Batman which The Flash fails to adapt from the Flashpoint narrative.
Commenting on Morgan’s absence from the film, Muschietti recently stated:
We didn’t want to give the audience a literal adaptation of the comic book. I think that’s one of the good decisions that we made. If you see the movie, you don’t know where this is going. And as much as some people would’ve liked to see that literal adaptation, I think we did the right thing. I think that they will be gratified by seeing that the story takes another direction.
As The Flash draws the SnyderVerse saga to a close, one can only balk and wonder at the number of missed opportunities and stories that could have been shaped and molded by the events of Flashpoint. The war between Amazons and Atlanteans that decimates more than half of Europe, the altered identity of the Joker as Martha Wayne who goes mad after experiencing the loss of her son, and the existence of a Superman who was always a lab-rat and never the Man of Tomorrow – all of these elements make up bits and pieces of the Flashpoint reality.
Unfortunately, as worlds collide and realities are altered, Thomas Wayne remains steadfastly absent as that reality’s Crusader while Michael Keaton takes over as the Batman belonging to Earth-789. The absence then also robs the fans of an anticipated potential reunion of Bruce Wayne with his father, a plot device that could have served as an emotional adieu to the now-former SnyderVerse.
The Flash premieres in theatres worldwide on June 16, 2023.
Source: Entertainment Tonight
