Keaton’s Flash Role Is Good For Batman (But Not For Barry)

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Michael Keaton playing Batman in The Flash is of course a great thing for the Caped Crusader, but perhaps not for Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen. His inclusion is indicative of DC’s interest in making the Batman integral to its big-screen endeavors, but having him around could be a problem for other characters, particularly the Scarlet Speedster.

Having other superheroes isn’t necessarily a problem, but it’s important to keep in mind that The Flash has not one, but two iterations of the same hero: Batman. Both Ben Affleck’s character and the Michael Keaton version from Tim Burton’s Batman movies. Considering Batman is one of DC’s two biggest superheroes ever, The Flash is running the risk of overshadowing Barry just by using him. The addition of two Caped Crusaders makes that risk even greater.

Of course, Keaton reprising his role as Bruce Wayne is a major boost to the DCEU, which will soon have three live-action versions of Batman, with the other being Robert Pattinson’s take on the character. It certainly makes Batman feel like he may be the most important DCEU character, but at the same time, his presence limits Barry’s floor space in The Flash.

Regardless of which heroes appear in the movie, The Flash is at its heart a Barry Allen story, so its essential DC doesn’t let other characters steal the show. That’ll be hard to do at this point, especially with Keaton being in the movie. Considering how popular Tim Burton’s movies are, the multiverse aspect of it all, and the fact that Keaton hasn’t played Batman in almost 30 years, a lot of eyes are going to be on him when he makes his grand entrance in The Flash. As big of a selling point Keaton’s Batman may be, he can also hurt Barry as a character. An example of how this could be the case is Justice League. In Joss Whedon's theatrical cut of the film, Barry got some noteworthy moments, but he didn’t really stand out as much as the newly-resurrected Superman (Henry Cavill), Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, or Batman. It would be a shame if The Flash continues to have Barry undermined by the presence of other exciting characters.