Danny DeVito Explains How That Viral Oscars Batman Reunion Came Together

Today was an exciting day for Tim Burton fans! Not only was the latest trailer for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice released, but it also revealed a special cameo. The movie will feature an appearance by Danny DeVito, who previously starred in Burton’s Batman Returns as the Penguin. The Beetlejuice sequel is set to star Michael Keaton as the titular character. Of course, Keaton also played Batman in Burton’s DC films. Earlier this year, DeVito presented at the Oscars with his Twins and Junior co-star, Arnold Schwarzenegger. During the viral moment, the duo poked fun at Keaton in the audience, pointing out that they’ve both tried to kill Batman. While Schwarzenegger didn’t work with Keaton, he did play Mr. Freeze opposite George Clooney in Batman & Robin. During a recent interview, DeVito explained how the Oscars reunion with Schwarzenegger came together. 

“Arnold and I love working together,” DeVito explained to Deadline when asked about their Oscars reunion. “We’re doing a movie together next year … We’ve been working on it … Since Twins and Junior, and all the stuff we’ve done together, we’ve become friends. That came out of like, you know, they asked us to do the Oscars and I don’t know where the idea came from … We did both try to kill Batman, so that was fun.”

“I don’t think Keaton was his Batman, but I got to try to kill Keaton, ’cause if you’ve ever met him, that’s the thing. You wanna just strangle him,” he joked. “Only as Oswald Cobblepot. If I’m honest, I love Michael. So that was totally a lot of fun, and the big highlight of the night was my tuxedo fit. It was really good to be out there with Arnold.”

“Arnold and I have a chemisty,” he added when asked about his upcoming project with Schwarzenegger. “And it’s gonna be on the 60-foot screen next year, and I’m very excited about it.”

Is The Twins Sequel Happening?

While DeVito and Schwarzenegger plan to work together again, it’s unclear if the Twins sequel will ever see the light of day. The project was reportedly called Triplets and was also set to star Tracy Morgan as a third brother, but the project was halted after Ivan Reitman died. According to Schwarzenegger, it fell apart because Reitman’s son, Jason Reitman, wasn’t interested in pursuing the project.

“Jason Reitman f—ed it up!” Schwarzenegger told The Hollywood Reporter. “Jason Reitman literally stopped the project when his father died. His father wanted to do it really badly. I wanted to do it really badly. Danny DeVito wanted to do it really badly. We had the financing. When his father passed away, Jason says, ‘I never liked the idea,’ and put a hold on it. I’m developing another movie with Danny; he’s so much fun to work with and so talented.”

Stay tuned for more updates about DeVito and Schwarzenegger’s upcoming projects.