| Batman Forever | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster byJohn Alvin | |
| Directed by | Joel Schumacher |
| Screenplay by |
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| Story by |
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| Based on |
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| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Stephen Goldblatt |
| Edited by | Dennis Virkler |
| Music by | Elliot Goldenthal |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | Warner Bros.[2] |
Release dates |
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Running time | 122 minutes[3] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $100 million[4] |
| Box office | $336.6 million[4] |
Batman Forever is a 1995 Americansuperhero film based on theDC Comics characterBatman byBob Kane andBill Finger.[a] It is the third installment of theBatman film series, acting as astandalone sequel toBatman Returns. Directed byJoel Schumacher and produced byTim Burton andPeter MacGregor-Scott, it starsVal Kilmer asBruce Wayne / Batman, replacingMichael Keaton,[6] alongsideJim Carrey,Tommy Lee Jones,Nicole Kidman, andChris O'Donnell. The film follows Batman as he attempts to prevent theRiddler (Carrey) andTwo-Face (Jones) from uncovering his secret identity and extracting information from the minds ofGotham City's residents, while at the same time navigating his feelings for psychologist Dr.Chase Meridian (Kidman) and adopting orphaned acrobatDick Grayson (O'Donnell)—who becomes his partner and best friend,Robin.
Schumacher mostly eschewed the dark, dystopian atmosphere of Burton's films by drawing inspiration from the Batman comic books of theDick Sprang era, as well asthe 1960s television series. After Keaton chose not to reprise his role,William Baldwin andEthan Hawke were considered as a replacement, before Kilmer joined the cast.
Batman Forever was released on June 16, 1995, to mixed reviews from critics, who praised the visuals, action sequences, and soundtrack, but criticized the screenplay and tonal departure from the previous two films. The film was a box office success, grossing over $336 million worldwide and becoming thesixth-highest-grossing film of 1995. It was followed byBatman & Robin in 1997, with Schumacher returning as the director, O'Donnell returning as Robin, andGeorge Clooney replacing Kilmer as Batman.
InGotham City,Batman defuses a hostage situation orchestrated by the criminalTwo-Face, formerlydistrict attorneyHarvey Dent, who escapes. Flashbacks reveal that Dent, once one of Batman's biggest supporters, was horribly disfigured withacid on one side of his face by mobsterSal Maroni. The trauma of the incident caused Dent to develop asplit personality, make decisions based on the flip of a coin, and swear vengeance against Batman for failing to prevent the incident.
Edward Nygma, an eccentric and egotistical researcher atWayne Enterprises, approaches his employer, Bruce Wayne, to present an invention that can beamtelevision signals directly into the brain, demanding immediate approval directly from Bruce. Bruce rejects the device as he is concerned that the technology couldmanipulate minds. After killing his abusive supervisor and staging it as a suicide, Nygma resigns and plots revenge against Bruce, sending himriddles.Criminal psychologistChase Meridian diagnoses Nygma aspsychotic.
Bruce attends acircus with Chase. Two-Face hijacks the event and threatens to detonate a bomb unless Batman reveals his identity.Dick Grayson, the youngest member of theFlying Graysons family of acrobats, prevents the bomb from killing anyone by throwing it into a river with the help of his family; however, Two-Face kills all of them except Dick in the process. Bruce invites the now-orphaned Dick to live atWayne Manor as hisward, where he later discovers that Bruce is Batman. Seeking to avenge the death of his family, Dick demands to join Batman incrime-fighting, hoping to kill Two-Face, but Bruce declines in order to help Dick move on instead, as he is considering retirement.
Nygma becomes theRiddler and teams up with Two-Face. They commit a series ofrobberies to finance Nygma's new company and mass-produce hisbrainwave device dubbed the Box, which steals information from minds and transfers it to Nygma's, increasing his intelligence but also slowly causing him to lose his grip on reality. At a party hosted by Nygma, Batman pursues Two-Face and is almost killed until Dick saves him.
Batman visits Chase, who explains that she has fallen in love with Bruce, and Bruce reveals his secret identity to her. Having discovered Bruce's secret through the Box, onHalloween night, Two-Face and the Riddler destroy theBatcave, shoot Bruce, and abduct Chase. As Bruce recovers, he and his butler,Alfred Pennyworth, deduce that Nygma is the Riddler through clues he left in his riddles, while Chase is held prisoner in the Riddler's lair. Bruce finally accepts Dick as his best friend and partner,Robin.
At the Riddler's lair, Robin defeats Two-Face but chooses to spare him, which allows Two-Face to capture Robin at gunpoint. The Riddler reveals his final riddle: Chase and Robin, representing the two sides of Batman's personality, are trapped in tubes above a deadly drop, and he only has the time to save one. Batman distracts the Riddler with a riddle himself, before destroying the Riddler's brainwave receiver with aBatarang, damaging the Riddler's mind and enabling Batman to rescue both when he sees the floor is an optical illusion. Two-Face corners them and flips his coin to decide their fate, but loses his balance after Batman throws multiple identical coins in the air, and falls to his death.
Committed toArkham Asylum, a now-delusional Nygma exclaims that he is Batman. Bruce, the real Batman, resumes his crusade with Robin as his partner.
Additionally, United States Senator and Batman fanPatrick Leahy makes an uncredited appearance as himself.[7]
Batman Returns was released in 1992 with financial success and generally favorable reviews from critics, butWarner Bros. was disappointed with its box office run, having made $150 million less than the first film. AfterBatman Returns was deemed too dark and inappropriate for children, withMcDonald's even recalling theirHappy Meal tie-in, Warner Bros. decided that this was the primary cause of the film's financial results.[8] After the film's release, Warner Bros. was not interested inTim Burton's return as director.[9] Burton noted he was unsure about returning to direct, writing: "I don't think Warner Bros. wanted me to direct a thirdBatman. I even said that to them."[10] Burton and Warner Bros. mutually agreed to part ways, though Burton would stay on as producer.John McTiernan turned down an offer to direct since he was too busy makingDie Hard with a Vengeance (1995).[11][12] In June 1993,Joel Schumacher was selected by Warner Bros. while he was filmingThe Client (1994), and with Burton's approval.[13][14]
Lee and Janet Scott-Batchler, a husband-and-wife screenwriting team, were hired to write the script. Warner Bros. had lost a bidding war for theirspec script titledSmoke and Mirrors toDisney'sHollywood Pictures. The project ultimately fell through,[15][16] and Warner Bros. offered the Batchlers several of their film properties to write. Being familiar with theBatman comics from their childhood, the Batchlers chose to work on the nextBatman film as their next project.[17] In a meeting with Burton, they agreed that "the key element to Batman is his duality. And it's not just that Batman is Bruce Wayne".[18]
"I always hated those titles likeBatman Forever. That sounds like a tattoo that somebody would get when they're on drugs or something. Or something some kid would write in the yearbook."
Their original script introduced a psychotic Riddler, real name Lyle Heckendorf, with a pet rat accompanying him. A scene cut from the final film included Heckendorf obtaining his costume from a fortune-telling leprechaun at the circus. Instead of NygmaTech, the company would have been named HeckTech.[20] The story elements and much of the dialogue still remained in the finished film, though Schumacher felt it could be "lighte[ne]d down". Keaton initially approved the selection of Schumacher as director and planned on reprising his role as Batman from the first two films.[21] Schumacher claims he originally had in mind an adaptation ofFrank Miller'sBatman: Year One and Keaton claimed that he was enthusiastic about the idea.[21][22] Warner Bros. rejected the idea as they wanted asequel, not aprequel, though Schumacher was able to include very brief events in Bruce Wayne's childhood with some events of the comicThe Dark Knight Returns.Akiva Goldsman, who worked with Schumacher onThe Client, was brought in to rewrite the script. Burton, who now was more interested in directingEd Wood (1994), later reflected he was taken aback by some of thefocus group meetings forBatman Forever, a title he hated. ProducerPeter MacGregor-Scott represented the studio's aim in making a film for theMTV Generation, with full merchandising appeal.[22]
Production went on fast track withRene Russo cast asChase Meridian, but Keaton decided not to reprise Batman because he did not like the direction the series was headed in, and rejected the script. Keaton's departure was announced in July 1994.[23][24][25] Keaton also wanted to pursue "more interesting roles",[26] turning down $15 million.[27] A decision was made to go with a younger actor for Bruce Wayne, and an offer was made toEthan Hawke, who turned it down, but eventually regretted the decision.[28] Hawke however would ultimately voice the character in theBatwheels animated series.[29] Schumacher had seenVal Kilmer inTombstone (1993), but was also interested inWilliam Baldwin (who like Hawke would later voice the character inJustice League: Crisis on Two Earths in 2010),Ralph Fiennes (who would later voice Alfred Pennyworth inThe Lego Batman Movie in 2017), andDaniel Day-Lewis.[30] While Burton pushed forJohnny Depp to get the role,Kurt Russell was also considered.[31][32] Kilmer, who as a child visited the studios wherethe 1960s series was recorded, and shortly before had visited a bat cave in Africa, was contacted by his agent for the role. Kilmer signed on by July 1994 without reading the script or knowing who the director was.[33][34]
With Kilmer's casting, Warner Bros. dropped Russo, considering her too old to be paired with Kilmer.[24]Jeanne Tripplehorn andLinda Hamilton were considered for the role, which was eventually recast withNicole Kidman.[35][32] Kidman later revealed she took the role because she "wanted to kiss Batman."[36]Billy Dee Williams took the role of Harvey Dent inthe 1989 film on the possibility of portraying Two-Face in a sequel, but Schumacher instead castTommy Lee Jones in the role.Al Pacino,Clint Eastwood,Martin Sheen andRobert De Niro were also considered.[37][38] Jones was reluctant to accept the role,[22] but did so at his son's insistence.[39]
Robin Williams was in discussions to be the Riddler at one point,[40][41] and was reportedly in competition for the role withJohn Malkovich.[9][42] In June 1994, the role was given toJim Carrey after Williams had reportedly turned it down.[35] According to Goldsman, Williams backed out after he and Schumacher couldn't see eye to eye.[41] In a 2003 interview, Schumacher statedMichael Jackson had lobbied hard for the role, but was turned down before Carrey was cast.[43]Brad Dourif (who was Burton's original choice to portray the Joker and Scarecrow after),Kelsey Grammer,Micky Dolenz,Matthew Broderick,Phil Hartman andSteve Martin were said to have been considered.[44][45]
Robin had appeared in theshooting script forBatman Returns but was deleted due to the production having too many characters.Marlon Wayans had been cast in the role and signed on for a potential sequel, but when Schumacher took over, he decided to open up casting to other actors.[46]Leonardo DiCaprio was considered, but decided not to pursue the role after a meeting with Schumacher.[47] Among others,Matt Damon,Corey Haim,Corey Feldman,Mark Wahlberg,Michael Worth,Toby Stephens,Ewan McGregor,Jude Law,Alan Cumming andScott Speedman were considered.[b]Chris O'Donnell was cast andMitch Gaylord served as hisstunt double. Gaylord also portrayed Mitch Grayson, Dick's older brother, who was created for the film.[35] Schumacher attempted to create a cameo role forBono as hisMacPhisto character, but both came to agree it was not suitable for the film.[55]
Principal photography began on September 24, 1994, andwrapped on March 5, 1995.[14][9] Schumacher hiredBarbara Ling for production design, claiming that the film needed a "force" and good design. Ling could "advance on it". Schumacher wanted a design in no way connected to the previous films, and instead inspired by the images from theBatman comic books seen in the 1940s and early 1950s and New York City architecture in the 1930s, with a combination of modernTokyo. He also wanted a "city with personality," with more statues, as well as various amounts of neon.
Schumacher and Kilmer clashed during the making of the film; Schumacher described Kilmer as "childish and impossible," reporting that he fought with various crewmen, and refused to speak to Schumacher for two weeks after the director told him to stop being rude.[56][57] Schumacher also mentioned Tommy Lee Jones as a source of trouble: "Jim Carrey was a gentleman, and Tommy Lee was threatened by him. I'm tired of defending overpaid, overprivileged actors. I pray I don't work with them again."[58] In a 2014 interview, Carrey acknowledged that Jones was not friendly to him, and recounted an incident wherein Jones told him: "I hate you. I really don't like you ... I cannot sanction your buffoonery."[59]
Rick Baker designed theprosthetic makeup.John Dykstra,Andrew Adamson,Jim Rygiel and Ariel Velasco-Shaw served asvisual effects supervisors, withRhythm & Hues Studios (R&H) andPacific Data Images also contributing to visual effects work. R&H and PDI provided aCGI Batman for complicated stunts.[60] For the costume design, producer Peter MacGregor-Scott claimed that 146 workers were at one point working together. Batman's costume was redesigned along the lines of a more "MTV organic, and edgier feel" to the suit.[61] Sound design and mixing was created and supervised byBruce Stambler and John Levesque, which included trips to caves to record bat sounds.[62] A newBatmobile was designed forBatman Forever, with two cars being constructed, one for stunt purposes and one for close-ups.[63] Chris O'Donnell had the area around his eyes painted black and then the Robin mask glued on him.[64] Swiss surrealist painterH. R. Giger provided his version for the Batmobile but it was considered too sinister for the film.[65]
The film used somemotion capture for certain visual effects. Warner Bros. had acquired motion capture technology fromarcade video game companyAcclaim Entertainment for use in the film's production.[66]
Elliot Goldenthal was hired by Schumacher to compose the film score before the screenplay was written. In discussions with Schumacher, the director wanted Goldenthal to avoid taking inspiration fromDanny Elfman, and requested an original composition.[67] The film's promotional teaser trailer however used the main title theme from Elfman'sscore from the 1989 film.[68]
The soundtrack was commercially successful, selling almost as many copies asPrince'ssoundtrack to the 1989Batman film. Only five of the songs on the soundtrack are actually featured in the movie. Hit singles from the soundtrack include "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" byU2 and "Kiss from a Rose" bySeal, both of which were nominated for MTV Movie Awards. "Kiss from a Rose" (whose music video was also directed by Joel Schumacher) reached No. 1 in the U.S. charts as well. The soundtrack itself, featuring additional songs byThe Flaming Lips,Brandy (both songs also included in the film),Method Man,Nick Cave,Michael Hutchence (ofINXS),PJ Harvey andMassive Attack, was an attempt to (in producer Peter MacGregor-Scott's words) make the film more "pop".
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In addition to a large line of toys, video games andaction figures fromKenner, theMcDonald's food chain released several collectibles and mugs to coincide with the release of the film.Peter David andAlan Grant wrote separatenovelizations of the film.[69][70]Dennis O'Neil authored a comic book adaptation, with art byMichal Dutkiewicz.[71]
Six Flags Great Adventure theme park re-themed their "Axis Chemical" arena, home of the Batman stunt show, to resembleBatman Forever, and the new show featured props from the film.Six Flags Over Texas featured a one-time fireworks show to promote the movie, and replica busts of Batman, Robin, Two-Face, and the Riddler could be found in the Justice League store in the Looney Tunes U.S.A. section until they were removed in 2023.Batman: The Ride opened atSix Flags St. Louis to promote the movie. AtSix Flags Over Georgia,The Mind Bender roller coaster was redesigned to look as though it were the creation of The Riddler and some images and props were used in the design of the roller coaster and its queue.
Video games based on the film were released.A tie-in video game, was released in 1995 forSuper Nintendo Entertainment System,Game Boy,Sega Genesis,Game Gear,R-Zone andMS-DOS, it was followed byBatman & Robin for thePlayStation, to promote the release ofthe 1997 film. Twoarcade versions,Batman Forever: The Arcade Game, was released in 1996 and was ported to the three consoles, and apinball machine based on the film was released in 1995 bySega Pinball.
Batman Forever was released onVHS andLaserDisc on October 31, 1995.[72] Over 3 million VHS copies were sold during the first week of release.[73] The film was then released onDVD on May 20, 1997. This release was a double sided disc containing bothwidescreen (1.85:1) andfull screen (1.33:1) versions of the film.Batman Forever made itsBlu-ray debut on April 20, 2010.[74] This was followed by anUltra HD Blu-ray release on June 4, 2019.[75]
Batman Forever went through a few major edits before its release. Originally darker than the final product, the film's original length was closer to two hours and forty minutes, according to Schumacher. There was talk of an extended cut being released to DVD for the film's tenth anniversary in 2005. While all four previousBatman films were given special-edition DVD releases on the same day as theBatman Begins DVD release, none of them were given extended cuts, although some scenes were in a deleted scenes section in the special features.[76][77][78]
In the United Kingdom, almost two minutes of cuts were made to ensure the film aPG cinema certificate; these cuts were waived for the 2024 cinema re-release, which was instead rated12.[79]
Batman Forever opened in a record 2,842 theaters and 4,300 screens in the United States and Canada on June 16, 1995, grossing $52.8 million in its opening weekend,[80][4][81] takingJurassic Park's record for having the highest opening-weekend gross of all time (it was surpassed two years later byThe Lost World: Jurassic Park's $72.1 million).[82] For six years, it had the largest opening weekend for aWarner Bros. film until 2001, when it was surpassed byHarry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.[83] The film also achieved the highest June opening weekend, holding that record until it was beaten byAustin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me in 1999.[84] It was the first film to gross $20 million in one day, on its opening day on Friday.[85] The film also beat outCongo to reach the number one spot.[82] It grossed $77.4 million in its first week, which was below the record $81.7 million set byJurassic Park.[81]
Additionally, the film held the record for having the highest opening weekend for a superhero film until it was taken byX-Men in 2000.[86][87] That year,How the Grinch Stole Christmas brokeBatman Forever's record for scoring the biggest opening weekend for any film starring Jim Carrey.[88] While the film was overtaken byPocahontas during its second weekend, it still made $29.2 million.[89] It then became the first film of 1995 to reach $100 million domestically.[90] The film started its international roll out in Japan on June 17, 1995, and grossed $2.2 million in 5 days from 167 screens, which was only 80% of the gross of its predecessorBatman Returns.[91]
The film went on to gross $184 million in the United States and Canada, and $152.5 million in other countries, totaling $336.53 million. The film grossed more thanBatman Returns,[92] and is the second-highest-grossing film from 1995 in the United States, behindToy Story, as well as the sixth-highest-grossing film of that year worldwide.
OnRotten Tomatoes,Batman Forever has an approval rating of 41% based on 73 reviews, with an average rating of 5.1/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Loud, excessively busy, and often boring,Batman Forever nonetheless has the charisma of Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones to offer mild relief."[93] OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 51 out of 100, based on 23 critics, indicating "mixed or average" reviews.[94] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A−" on an A+ to F scale.[95]
Peter Travers ofRolling Stone wrote: "Batman Forever still gets in its licks. There's no fun machine this summer that packs more surprises." Travers criticized the film's excessive commercialism and felt that "the script misses the pain Tim Burton caught in a man tormented by the long-ago murder of his parents", but praised Kilmer's performance as having a "deftly understated [...] comic edge".[96]James Berardinelli ofReelViews enjoyed the film, writing: "It's lighter, brighter, funnier, faster-paced, and a whole lot more colorful than before."[97]
On the television programSiskel & Ebert,Gene Siskel of theChicago Tribune andRoger Ebert of theChicago Sun-Times both gave the film mixed reviews, but with the former giving it athumbs up and the latter athumbs down.[98] In his written review, Ebert wrote: "Is the movie better entertainment? Well, it's great bubblegum for the eyes. Younger children will be able to process it more easily; some kids were led bawling fromBatman Returns where thePG-13 rating was a joke."[99]
Mick LaSalle of theSan Francisco Chronicle had a mixed reaction, concluding: "a shot of Kilmer's rubber buns at one point is guaranteed to bring squeals from the audience."[100] Brian Lowry ofVariety believed: "One does have to question the logic behind adding nipples to the hard-rubberbatsuit. Whose idea was that supposed to be anyway,Alfred's? Some of thecomputer-generatedGotham cityscapes appear too obviously fake.Elliot Goldenthal's score, while serviceable, also isn't as stirring asDanny Elfman's work in the first two films."[101]
Some observers thought Schumacher, a gay man, added possiblehomoeroticinnuendo in the storyline.[102] Regarding the costume design, Schumacher stated: "I had no idea that putting nipples on the Batsuit and Robin suit were going to spark international headlines. The bodies of the suits come fromAncient Greek statues, which display perfect bodies. They are anatomically correct."[102] O'Donnell felt: "it wasn't so much the nipples that bothered me. It was the codpiece. The press obviously played it up and made it a big deal, especially with Joel directing. I didn't think twice about the controversy, but going back and looking and seeing some of the pictures, it was very unusual."[102]
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At the68th Academy Awards,Batman Forever was nominated forCinematography (lost toBraveheart),Sound (Donald O. Mitchell,Frank A. Montaño,Michael Herbick andPetur Hliddal; lost toApollo 13) andSound Effects Editing (John Leveque andBruce Stambler; also lost toBraveheart).[103][104]
"Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" byU2 was nominated for theGolden Globe Award for Best Original Song (lost to "Colors of the Wind" fromPocahontas), but was also nominated for theGolden Raspberry Award for Worst Original Song (lost to "Walk into the Wind" fromShowgirls).
At the22nd Saturn Awards, the film was nominated forBest Fantasy Film (lost toBabe),Make-up (lost toSeven),Special Effects (lost toJumanji) andCostume Design (lost to12 Monkeys).
ComposerElliot Goldenthal was given aGrammy Award nomination.
Batman Forever received six nominations at the1996 MTV Movie Awards, four of which were divided between two categories (Carrey and Lee Jones forBest Villain; and Seal's "Kiss from a Rose" and U2's "Hold Me" inBest Song from a Movie).
Cuts were made to the film based on audience reactions during test screenings, like the rest of theBatman films. Photographs from these scenes have always been available since the film's release, shown in magazines such asStarlog. Some excerpts from these scenes appear in the music video for "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me".[105] In 2005,Batman Forever was the only film in the franchise to include a dedicated deleted scenes selection among its bonus content on the special edition DVD.[77]
After Schumacher died on June 22, 2020, media outlets started reporting the possible existence of an extended cut, with the first rumors being thrown in by AmericanjournalistMarc Bernardin. Bernardin claimed it to be darker and contain less camp than the theatrical cut. Some of the differences include Bruce having a vision of a human-sized bat, less of an emphasis on Dick Grayson, and a focus on Bruce's psychological issues with Chase. The cut uses about 50 minutes of additional footage. Warner Bros. confirmed that alternative test screening cuts existed after an interview withVariety, although they have no plans to release it and are unsure about what, if any, footage remains. Later that year on August 7, Kilmer's appearance atDC FanDome fueled fan speculation about the release of a so-called "Schumacher Cut".[106]Batman Forever screenwriter Akiva Goldsman revealed in a YouTube interview in April 2021 that he had recently seen the original cut of the film (dubbed "Preview Cut: One") and that he expects a rebirth coming up, suggesting all the footage needed to make the Schumacher cut still exists and that the release of a director's cut might be possible.[107]
In July 2023, following a private screening of a workprint version by directorKevin Smith, Goldsman confirmed that the original cut does exist. Even though Warner Bros. currently has no plans to release it, he said he was hopeful for a possible distribution in the future.[108] Some of the aforementioned deleted scenes made up a portion of this footage.[109][110]
In July 2024, Goldsman reaffirmed the existence of the director's cut, while also declaring that work to restore it has been put on hold following Warner Bros.' recent internal turmoil.[111]
In May 2025, an independent Los Angeles theater announced that a screening of the workprint of the director's cut at their venue later that month. However, on May 24, the screening was cancelled following acease and desist letter from Warner Bros.[112]
In July 2025, during an interview about his career, Goldsman declared that while Warner Bros isn't currently interested in releasing the director's cut, he's still lobbying for it.[113]
In September 2025, during the celebrations for Batman Day, executive producer Michael E. Uslan confirmed the existence of the unreleased footage and urged the fans to continue to voice their support for the release of the alternate cut of the film.[114]
An alternate six-issue comic book continuation ofBatman Returns titledBatman '89, which ignores the events ofBatman Forever andBatman & Robin and brings back Keaton's Batman along with Burton's dark setting seen in his first two Batman films, along with elements of his failed thirdBatman film (particularly, the return ofBilly Dee Williams' Harvey Dent and transformation into Two-Face, the introductions of new versions of Robin andBarbara Gordon, and the return of Catwoman), was launched on August 10, 2021, with its issues releasing monthly before ending in July 2022.[115][importance?]
In response to a question as to whether Schumacher's Batman films are canon to the world ofBatman '89, the first two films' screenwriterSam Hamm, who also serves as the comics' writer, confirmed that the latter two films take place in a diverging timeline and they are not building toward that fate.[116]
[INTERVIEWER:] I think you said no toMission: Impossible, toBatman Forever, toSpeed, toTerminator 3... [MCTIERNAN:] Yeah, all of those. And loads of others.
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