Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck will each appear as Batman in the live-action Flashpoint, or so publicity claims. Danny DeVito's Penguin could (and should) cameo, but the Tim Burton teasers don't end there.
The long-rumored, live-action Batman Beyond may go before the cameras as well, with Keaton (as has been long hoped) playing mentor to Terry McGinnis' next-generation crusader.
Burton will allegedly direct. If so, that might mean references to follow on Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman, Kim Basinger's Vicki Vale, Christopher Walken's Max Shreck, Billy Dee Williams' Harvey Two-Face and maybe, just maybe (fingers crossed real tight), Jack Nicholson's Joker.
Keep in mind that the Joker was resurrected (albeit in a roundabout way) for an animated Batman Beyond movie. Could this established concept pave the way for a Nicholson return?
Nicholson's age shouldn't matter. If there's an intent to make Harrison Ford look younger for an Indy rehash, a few computerized nips and tucks on Nicholson should be a breeze. With clown make-up applied, it would all jive like a damn, demented dream.
Right now, nothing is confirmed on the Batman Beyond plot. The proposal could die on the vine as other attempts have, but with WB/DC/CW crisscrossing its universes, there appears to be a better chance for this one to reach fruition.
I may sound like a broken record, but it would be wise (and profitable) to mix, match and juxtapose, to leap among old and new comic book-culled worlds without restraint, whether for DC or Marvel. If one's gonna plunge into the alternate-reality arena, I say plunge in full steam ahead or don't plunge in at all. Let's hope as such that the prospect of Nicholson's Joker doesn't get lost in that obvious, exploitative shuffle. It's way too ripe an idea to dismiss.
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