James Gunn has responded to rumors that George Clooney would be returning as Batman in the DCU – and promptly shut them down.
"Is it true you're casting George Clooney as the new main DCU Batman?" a Twitter user asked. "Absolutely not," Gunn replied. The rumor mill started after reports that the upcoming The Flash movie would feature an appearance from another former Batman. Michael Keaton is already confirmed to appear, along with Ben Affleck, so that leaves the options open to Val Kilmer, Clooney, or Christian Bale.
This gossip then escalated to rumors that the mystery returning Batman would then go on to play Bruce Wayne in upcoming DCU projects. "Does this mean [we're] still getting an actor who [was] already batman or [we're] getting a new actor altogether?" someone else asked, to which Gunn responded, "New actor."
Clooney played the Caped Crusader in 1997's Batman & Robin, a followup to 1995's Batman Forever in which Clooney replaced Kilmer in the lead role. Chris O'Donnell played Robin. The movie also stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the villainous Mr. Freeze, Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy, and Alicia Silverstone as Batgirl.
A new Batman and Robin movie is currently in the works under Gunn and Peter Safran's new regime at DC Studios, but no casting information has been revealed yet. Robert Pattinson's iteration of the character in Matt Reeves' The Batman (and its upcoming sequel) will not be part of this universe, however – The Batman and Joker are part of DC Elseworlds instead.
Next up for DC is Shazam! Fury of the Gods, which arrives on the big screen on March 17. In the meantime, check out our guide to the other most exciting movie release dates coming our way in 2023.
