Bruce Timm has his name tied to some of the greatest adaptations of the Caped Crusader, including Batman: The Animated Series. With the various animated shows and live action adaptations, Batman is one of the most famous superheroes of the generation and those that came before them. Out of which, the most renowned stands out as Batman Beyond.
The futuristic take on an otherwise dark and brooding tale has always gathered attention from fans worldwide. However, there is more to the story than what meets the eye. The story that became a fan favorite was a last minute idea. One that Bruce Timm never intended to make in the first place.
In fact, Batman Beyond was an idea put on paper on a whim, made for an audience much younger than the one Timm was used to catering to.
Bruce Timm Needed Something for a Younger Audience
Bruce Timm was approached by Warner Bros. after the success of his Batman projects for another animated series, one that looked towards the younger audience as compared to a more matured one that attracted fans of Batman: The Animated Series. During an interview in Batman: The Complete History, the animator elaborated on how the series came to be.
“In desperation, we came up with the concept for ‘Batman Beyond,’ which we thought was the only thing we could do that would reinvent the character without wrecking the continuity we had done.” Timm added. “There was the opportunity to do more of a science-fictional Gotham City, and the more we talked about it the more we liked it.”
It was a desperate attempt to satisfy the studios, one that worked extremely well. Timm brought along his team to somehow put a different angle to the otherwise Byronic Hero.
They added a scientific twist to Batman, giving him a futuristic angle to fight with. A Gotham beyond dystopia. How does one completely change a character without actually destroying the essence of it; Bruce Timm certainly knows how to.
WB’s Attempt Failed
The amount of effort and thinking put into the show just to make it lighter seemed to have digressed incredibly. Despite WB’s several attempts at making the series lighter for their younger audiences, it was limiting. This would not be the first time Bruce Timm went against the studio as he gained the reputation of putting in a lot of darker themes in a show that was meant to be lighter in many ways.
Although he preferred the idea of wanting a generalized audience watching his shows as compared to a specific; that did not stop him from adding themes that would otherwise go against the studios.
His liberation with Batman Beyond is what made the series such a spectacle. Not only was it unique, but the approach taken was unlike any. Batman, a hero that is so bizarrely hidden in his own shadows was forced to step into an unusual light.
Batman Beyond, streaming on Max.
