'Batman' Fan Art Imagines Michael Keaton as Old Bruce Wayne

DC fans never seem to lose their imaginative inspiration, even when the official DC Extended Universe movie franchise has let them down. Case in point is today's peice of Batman fan art, which imagines the way that original Batman (1989) movie star Michael Keaton could be brought back into the franchise fold:

This picture tries to cash in on Hollywood's current craze with direct sequels released decades after a classic film first came out - especially the kind of direct sequels that wipe away some of a franchise's most flagrant missteps (see: Halloween (2018)).

The immediate reaction from most Batman fans who saw this image pop-up on Reddit has been pretty clear: this is just yet another reason why many DC fans have been calling for there to be a Batman Beyond live-action movie. That series took us to a Gotham City of 2039, in which a geriatric Bruce Wayne has retired form Batman duty. The Dark Knight returns to duty after Bruce has a young man named Terry McGinnis stumble into the Wayne Manor grounds after trying to escape from a gang known as "The Jokers." When Terry learns that Bruce was the infamous Batman, Bruce opts to train the young boy (who has just lost his father to a violent crime), and eventually allows him to don a hi-tech suit of Batman armor, officially making Terry the futuristic hero known as "Batman Beyond".

For many fans of the current DCEU, it's Ben Affleck's Bruce Wayne who has been discussed as a strong candidate to play the future version of Bruce who trains Terry - but the idea of it being Michael Keaton is even more interesting.

The fact is that at the time of writing this, the DCEU brand isn't all that strong. Depending on what happens to the returns of the upcoming Joker standalone movie, there may soon be a strong argument for why DC/WB would be more successful making Batman Beyond a direct sequel to Batman (1989), rather than trying to make the franchise bend and twist so that it connect with the DCEU continuity. A Batman Beyond sequel to Batman (1989) could also wipe away all of the '90s Batman movies (Returns, Forever, Batman & Robin), and bring back elements of the Tim Burton bat-universe, while still painting in the new light of a different director's vision.

After seeing Keaton's work in the Oscar-courting drama Birdman, it would be interesting to see him take on an aged and curmudgeonly Bruce Wayne, and after his role as Vulture in Spider-Man: Homecoming, it's clear that the action demands of the modern superhero movie era won't slow down the actor (who is 67 years old).

Hopefully this artwork can spark an idea in WB/DC to make Batman Beyond happen - so share this article!

Aquaman opens in theaters December 21st. Other upcoming DC Extended Universe movies include Wonder Woman 1984 on November 1, 2019, Shazam on April 5, 2019, and Birds of Prey on February 7, 2020.