There’s a Crisis on Infinite Earths. Dismayed DC fans are slamming Warner Bros. for “trying to replace” Ben Affleck‘s Batman and Henry Cavill‘s Superman with their respective predecessors, Michael Keaton and Christopher Reeve, whose classic superheroes now dress up the exterior of the new welcome center to the Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood building in Burbank, California. The tour, which highlights “100 years of storytelling” with the most iconic Warner Bros. characters and franchises, has been updated to include the retro Keaton Batman and the Reeve Superman alongside modern DC superstars from the DC Extended Universe: Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa’s Aquaman, and Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn.
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Photos of the renovation captured by Awards Ace editor-in-chief Erick Weber show the Studio Tour Hollywood building adorned with banners featuring favorite series Friends and The Big Bang Theory, the classic Looney Tunes, and characters from Warners’ Wizarding World franchise, including Daniel Radcliffe’s Harry Potter and Eddie Redmayne’s Newt Scamander of Fantastic Beasts fame.
The placement of the Keaton Batman and the Reeves Superman, and the absence of Affleck’s Dark Knight and Cavill’s Man of Steel, is seen by some as a slight towards the two actors whose futures are uncertain in the shared DCEU. Affleck and Cavill last reprised their roles for a brief round of additional photography on filmmaker Zack Snyder’s director’s cut of Justice League, which the studio controversially decided was not canon with its ongoing universe that next brings Keaton’s Batman into the DCEU in The Flash.
And there we are, Harry, Hermione & Newt join Ron & the DC superstars pic.twitter.com/Z9mICMzfdP
— 𝔼𝕎 AWARDS ACE (@ErickWeber) June 19, 2021
“You’ve got the current members of the DCEU movies up there EXCEPT Ben Affleck’s Batman and Henry Cavill’s Superman…why??” one fan tweeted. Wrote another, “They’re literally trying to erase the movies and characters we love right in [front] of our eyes.”
“The lack of respect towards Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck is astounding,” reads one fan’s tweet in response to the updated building. “They clearly don’t want to acknowledge that MAN OF STEEL, BATMAN V SUPERMAN and ZACK SNYDER’S JUSTICE LEAGUE exists.”
Another fan countered, tweeting: “It’s mother flipping Superman and Batman, not Henry Cavill or Chris Reeve or Ben Affleck or Michael Keaton. They just chose to feature their most indelible versions of the characters on film. No shade at all.”
The Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood, which reopens on June 26 after a 15-month hiatus, features props and experiences encompassing all eras of DC films, including 1989’s Batman, The Dark Knight, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and recent releases like Wonder Woman 1984 and Zack Snyder’s Justice League.
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Here’s what fans are saying about the new look:
From @dcuverse
Kinda obvious at this point that WB is trying to replace Ben Affleck’s Batman with Keaton’s. pic.twitter.com/yRPFtwv8WK
— Brenton (@dcuverse) June 20, 2021
From @ReyRockatansky
You’ve got the current members of the DCEU movies up there EXCEPT Ben Affleck’s Batman and Henry Cavill’s Superman…why?? This is very weird @wbpictures pic.twitter.com/Mp161ww3AA
— Obi-Wan Kenobi (@ReyRockatansky) June 21, 2021
From @Emlehh
Have they used the most popular Superman & Batman or like the first movie iterations of the characters like with Harley, Aquaman & Wonder Woman? 🤔 Or are they disrespecting Henry Cavill & Ben Affleck? Who knows!? https://t.co/aYh72mUOwF
— Emlehh *WEAR A MASK FFS* (@Emlehh) June 20, 2021
From @Snyder_Cut_240
“They clearly don’t want to acknowledge that MAN OF STEEL, BATMAN V SUPERMAN and ZACK SNYDER’S JUSTICE LEAGUE exists*
— Ω Ryan Ω (@Snyder_Cut_240) June 20, 2021
Bloody typos where I’m mad.
From @ak17_adi
Warner Bros. really hates Ben Affleck’s Batman and Henry Cavill’s Superman 💀 #RestoreTheSnyderVerse https://t.co/N9Ienpzz5e
— 人造人間17号ラピス (@ak17_adi) June 20, 2021
From @dank_farrik
This is so sad @warnerbros . Are Henry Cavil and Ben Affleck a joke to you?? They are in 3 films and in the same universe as Gal’s WW, Margot’s Harley and Jason’s Aquaman. @ATT @DiscoveryIncTV Help us and fix this 🙏 #Batman #Superman #RestoreTheSnyderVerse pic.twitter.com/PdjD467gDi
— DankFarrik (@dank_farrik) June 20, 2021
From @ElGeekdeAcero
Fuck you @wbpictures you are trying to erase to #Superman #HenryCavill and #Batman #BenAffleck with what? A dead man and an old man? Your hipocrecy doesn’t have limits. #ZackSnydersJusticeLeague is a success, you want it or not@Discovery @DiscoveryIncTV #RestoreTheSnyderVerse pic.twitter.com/izwIICO0bX
— 𝗘𝗹 𝗚𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝗱𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗲𝗿𝗼 (@ElGeekdeAcero) June 21, 2021
From @theSNYDERVERSE
They’re literally trying to erase the movies and characters we love right in from of our eyes. Why tf are Keaton and Reeve here instead of our CURRENT Batman and superman????(Yes it’s just a billboard but it’s a symptom of a larger issue) pic.twitter.com/llqB8wXfLl
— 𝗠𝗘𝗥𝗖Ʊ𝗥𝗬 (@theSNYDERVERSE) June 20, 2021