Batman Beyond Revival Happening?
Batman Beyond could be getting a revival on HBO Max.
This article is more than 2 years old
What is Bruce Wayne going to do when he gets older and can’t fight crime anymore? This question birthed the 1999 animated series Batman Beyond. Bruce Wayne mentors a young Terry McGinnis, crime fighter and new generation superhero in a very dark future Neo-Gotham. The series ran for three seasons and is still a fan favorite today. With the launch of HBO Max, the series is having a moment where it’s been able to reach new audiences and revive the interest of fans from twenty years ago. Recently, the cast for Batman Beyond had a panel reading at IGN Fan Fest. As fans do, one audience member asked about the possibility of a new project for Terry McGinnis.
Most of the cast members shrugged, but Batman Beyond voice and casting director Andrea Romano took the mic. They gave a more detailed and thoughtful answer about the possibility. “It will depend on the fans asking, and asking, and asking for it until Warner Bros. would be foolish not to,” they said. “So they have to begin a campaign of sorts and just let Warner Bros. know that that’s what they want. Because we would like to make it, it would be great fun – we’re all still around, we’re all still available, everybody’s still doing beautiful work.”
How likely does it seem that fans will press Warner Bros. hard enough for this to happen? It isn’t out of the question. Fan interest in Batman Beyond is definitely there. Bruce Timm, who worked on the original series, has said that he believes the time for a live-action series is now. Recently, it was announced that Michael Keaton will be playing an older version of Batman for The Flash. Speculation immediately began. Why couldn’t Michael Keaton then play an older Bruce Wayne for Batman Beyond? And if he did, who would play Terry McGinnis?
Fans have thrown around many names to play the main character in a live-action Batman Beyond series. While there are definitely a lot of possibilities out there, Timothée Chalamet has definitely been a favorite. The actor’s career has been picking up recently. He got his start in indie films. He’s been a favorite in Greta Gerwig’s Ladybird and Little Women. Currently, we are waiting to see him as the starring character in Dune. It seems like a good time for him to take a role in a major franchise. Why not Batman Beyond? If Andrea Romano is correct, perhaps enough fan demand will get us there.
These days, fan demand has made a lot of things happen. Warner Bros. has the data on how many people are watching Batman Beyond on their streaming service, HBO Max. It’s also difficult for them to ignore fans when they make topics trend online. The Snyder Cut for Justice League is a strong example of how online conversations can push something to happen. With hashtags and online rumors that wouldn’t stop, Warner Bros. eventually made the new cut for the film happen. Of course, that situation was somewhat unique, but wouldn’t have happened without fan demand. How loud do fans have to get for a Batman Beyond revival to happen? Probably extremely so, but with new Batman projects happening all the time, it doens’t sound so far-fatched to imagine more Terry McGinnis projects someday.
