Superman: The Movie was released in 1978, with Tim Burton's Batman following in 1989. Both movies would receive sequels (of varying quality), but are rightly considered classics by fans.
They're also incredibly important early additions to the genre, with both movies, and Batman Returns, still influencing much of what we see on the big screen. While both worlds have recently been revisited in comic book sequels, Michael Keaton is set to reprise the role of Bruce Wayne in The Flash movie next year.
That was supposed to culminate with the actor starring in a Batman Beyond project, and you may be even more disappointed that didn't happen based on this news.
A new DC Comics one-shot, Dark Crisis: Big Bang, reveals that the comic book Barry Allen has taken notes on multiple Earths across the Multiverse, including Earth-789. In that reality, "Superman and Supergirl are Earth's only powered heroes; Batman's parents killed by the Joker. (Superman '78, Batman '89)."
This confirms that Christopher Reeve's Superman, Keaton's Batman, and Helen Slater's Supergirl share a reality - a game-changing revelation.
While we don't necessarily anticipate this being explored on screen, it's an exciting detail to drop and one we can imagine being addressed on the page at some point. For many, seeing these heroes cross paths in any way would be an absolute dream come true.
Inevitably, some fans have pointed out that this doesn't make a whole lot of sense as it contradicts the events of The CW's Crisis on Infinite Earths. DC Comics clearly isn't taking that crossover into account, though, and we do wonder whether The Flash movie will see Keaton's Caped Crusader mention a past meeting with the Man of Steel of his world.
What do you guys think about this revelation? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.