Michael Keaton Will Play Batman In The Flash, Publicist Says

Rumors have been swirling since last June that the upcoming Flash film is set to go the way of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, with two version of Batman appearing in the film. After speculation and some recent doubt, Keaton is now set to reprise his role as Batman in The Flash, according to TheWrap.

Michael Keaton's talent agency, ICM Partners, confirmed to TheWrap that Keaton will indeed appear in the film. While rumors started back in June, Keaton himself threw all that into doubt in a March interview with Deadline. There, Keaton said the "COVID situation in the UK" would "determine everything." The actor said that the pandemic was informing all of his decisions for upcoming roles.

"Is this thing going to kill me, literally? And you know, if it doesn't, then we talk," Keaton had said.

Keaton first played Batman in the 1989 eponymous film, which was one of the very first superhero films and the first superhero blockbuster. The Flash, directed by Andy Muschietti, will use the Flashpoint storyline. In this story, Barry Allen goes back in time--a thing The Flash can do (and does in Zack Snyder's Justice League)--to prevent the murder of his mother. The change has a variety of knock-on effects that start with him never becoming the Flash and end with Aquaman and Wonder Woman in an apocalyptic war.

The scale of the long-in-development live-action film will likely be quite different--we haven't heard word of Jason Momoa or Gal Gadot appearing in the film just yet, for example--but it looks like Warner Bros. is still hoping to push The Flash into some weird places. In addition to Keaton, Ben Affleck will appear as Batman. That's right: two Batmen. The Flash is officially starting production today, but things have been ramping up in recent weeks with regard to casting. While Billy Crudup left the film (again), Ron Livingston (Office Space) is on-board to play Barry's father, Henry Allen. Kiersey Clemons will play Iris West, and Maribel Verdu will appear as Barry's mother, Nora Allen. Perhaps the biggest casting news, though, is that Sasha Calle will appear in the film as Supergirl, a character who hasn't seen the silver screen since the 1984 Supergirl film starring Helen Slater.

The Flash is currently scheduled to hit theaters on November 4, 2022.