Michael Keaton IS Batman
Michael Keaton IS Batman
No, question, one of the greatest moments of the Super Bowl 57 is The Flash trailer featuring Michael Keaton as Batman! I am sure everyone cheered in the audience when Toby Mcquire showed up as Spider-Man again in Spider-Man in the Multiverse of Madness. And I can’t wait to hear the theater roar as Michael Keaton dons the caped cowl again.
While DC has fallen short of creating a multiverse as diverse and connected as Marvel, they struck a magical cord with the appearance of Keaton. What 90s kid (technically Batman came out in 89′ but the storm that followed) can’t remember picking up their Batman-themed giant Taco Bell soda cups? All the smooth coolness of the Batmobile. And rocking out to Prince’s theme for the Joker! Rocking Batman right into the 90s!
We have had several actors play Batman, but Michael Keaton is the best! You could almost hear the cheering through the web when he appeared in The Flash. Forums exploding with nerdy delight! Would Ben Affleck or George Clooney get this level of fanfare? I would argue that they would not.
I’M BATMAN!
Why is Michael Keaton the best Batman? He wasn’t the first, Adam West hit us with all the pop the 60s could deliver. But Keaton delivered us into the Dark Knight era. Far removed from the campy and brightly colored version of the 60s. Tim Burton’s vision coupled with Keaton has only been replicated again and again since then. Keaton is sympathetic, recluse, and funny as Bruce Wayne. He’s dark, dangerous, and brooding as Batman.
Keaton was the first to alter Batman’s voice so that it was diverse enough to really separate the secret identity. George Clooney is George Clooney as Batman. Christian Bale is great as Batman physically, but that voice is so great in its extreme that it’s so fun to replicate. But it’s not scary. Try it! I love doing Bale Batman. Tip: Do it like you just ran a marathon, totally out of breath. “WHERE’S RACHEL?!”
And while Jack Nicholson played the Joker amazingly, most fans were not excited about the idea of Michael playing Batman at first. but now so many years later, how can there be anyone else? Go on, say it “I’m Batman!”