The cancelation of Batgirl has devastated many DC fans for several reasons. As well as seeing Leslie Grace bring Barbara Gordon’s alter-ego to life on screen for her first solo movie, the scrapped film would also have seen fan-favorite Brendan Fraser taking on the role of villain Firefly, J.K. Simmons reprising his role as Commissioner Gordon for the first time since Justice League and Michael Keaton returning as Batman for the first time in over 30 years. With the movie now being shelved, insiders have started discussing how Keaton would have fit into the story, and it seems he did not have a huge role in the film.It seems that Batgirl’s strange and muddled combination of universes was apparently linked to events that are yet to be seen in The Flash. Although The Flash is still happening next year – for now – this does align with many theories and rumors about how The Flash would cause a multiversal collision that would be felt across the DCEU and allow Warner Bros. to complete a soft-reboot of the franchise. On the back of this, Twitter user ViewerAnon, who has often delivered insider information on test screenings, has revealed more specifically in relation to Keaton’s appearance in the movie, which turns out was limited to five scenes. The post read:
“Ok, well no point holding info anymore; Michael Keaton only had 5 scenes in BATGIRL. He didn’t train Barbara, she just dressed up as Batman for a Halloween party, stopped some terrorists, and tweaked the costume to be a superhero. He meets Barbara twice in costume, first on the street telling her not to do this, then in one of those big Tim Burton-y towers where he helps her with something she needs. The last scene of the movie was them teaming up and diving off a gargoyle to fly around Gotham.”
Michael Keaton’s Batman Role in Batgirl Was Not Extensive
While many fans wanted Michael Keaton to be an integral part of Batgirl, it appears he was something of a cameo role rather than a main part. However, from the description of the movie, it also seems that Keaton’s Batman was being set up to appear in future movies or series, and this was just a teasing of the character. With Batgirl now out of contention, the question is how Keaton’s role in other DC projects will be impacted.
It was recently revealed that a cameo appearance by the actor in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom has now been removed, and Ben Affleck will once again assume the role of Batman. With both Keaton and Affleck appearing as their respective Dark Knights in The Flash, which is the next DC movie to be released after the Aquaman sequel, it is likely that either of them appearing in the movie would act as a lead in to that movie rather than having any major impact on Aquaman’s story. With Warner Bros. diverting attention to Black Adam and Shazam! Fury of the Gods for now, all of that is a bridge that is not going to be crossed until much later.