Director Tim Burton came close to directing several superhero movies that didn't get made, and here's why they didn't happen. Today, superhero movies, mostly based on characters created by Marvel and DC, dominate the box office in a way that no one likely ever imagined prior to the success of Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight and Iron Man's debut MCU film in 2008. Before the success of Fox's X-Men and Sony's Spider-Man franchises in the early 2000s, big superhero movie hits were few and far between.

One such major success story though was Burton's 1989 Batman movie, which starred Michael Keaton as the Caped Crusader and his billionaire alter ego Bruce Wayne. While then primarily known as a comic actor, Keaton made the dual role his own and remains many moviegoers' favorite Batman actor of all time. Burton's Batman was the biggest hit of 1989, and both Burton and Keaton would return for the 1992 sequel Batman Returns, which wasn't as big but is today quite fondly remembered.

Related: What Happened To Tim Burton Movies: When Did Critics Turn Against Him?

Sadly, Burton's never returned to the comic book superhero genre since his brushes with Gotham City, but that's not for lack of wanting to. In fact, Burton has come very close to directing three other DC-based superhero movies since Batman Returns, but for various reasons, none of those projects ever came to fruition. Here's a look at all three and why they went unrealized.

Catwoman

Catwoman looking into the camera in Batman Returns

One of the biggest attractions to be found in Tim Burton's Batman movies were the supervillains used, those being The Joker in the first movie and the team of The Penguin and Catwoman in Batman Returns. As with many portrayals of Catwoman on film, Selina Kyle ends up more of an antihero than a villain, and even though she appears to die, it's heavily implied she actually survived the sequel. While Warner Bros. decided to go in a different direction with the next mainline Batman movie, Batman Forever, and Burton had no interest in taking part, the studio did originally want Burton to stay involved with DC. After Michelle Pfeiffer's leather-clad, seductively dangerous take on Catwoman proved very popular with audiences, Warner Bros. decided to make a spinoff about the character, with Burton signed on to direct in 1993.

However, development on the Catwoman movie took a few years to really get moving, with Batman Returns writer Daniel Waters not turning in a completed script until 1995. By that point, though, Pfeiffer had gone one to become a mother and had decided to focus more on family and less on her career, becoming choosier about her projects. Pfeiffer eventually dropped out, and by that point, Burton's involvement had also ceased. Ashley Judd was then cast as a replacement lead, but she, too, didn't stick around. Sadly, the end result of the entire effort to make a Catwoman movie was the infamously bad 2004 film starring Halle Berry. For what it's worth, writer Waters has said that his script saw Michelle Pfeiffer's Catwoman attempt to take a vacation in a Las Vegas-esque resort town called Oasisburg that's run by superheroes. Those heroes turned out to be corrupt, leading Selina to put the leather suit back on and go to work.

Batman Continues

Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne with his mask off in Batman Returns

Before Burton signed on to direct the potential Catwoman spinoff, there were initial talks to have Burton return as director for a third Batman movie, called Batman Continues. Keaton was also set to return as Batman, while Pfeiffer was initially planned to appear as Catwoman, and Billy Dee Williams' Harvey Dent would finally evolve into Two-Face. The Riddler would've appeared as well, played by none other than Robin Williams. To top things off, Marlon Wayans was set to debut as Robin, after almost appearing in Batman Returns.

Related: Batman Returns: Why Tim Burton Almost Didn't Direct

Unfortunately, all that was basically tossed aside when Warner Bros. decided to go in a more family-friendly direction with director Joel Schumacher, the result of which was ultimately Batman Forever. The studio ostensibly did that due to their being lower box office and merchandise sales for Batman Returns than the 1989 Batman earned, and controversy among some self-appointed moral guardians about such a dark movie being marketed toward kids. Burton received a largely ceremonial producer credit on Batman Forever, while Keaton ended up leaving entirely and being replaced by Val Kilmer. Wayans was replaced by Chris O'Donnell as Robin, Robin Williams was replaced by Jim Carrey as Riddler, and Billy Dee Williams was replaced by Tommy Lee Jones as Two-Face. All three actors were quite upset, although Wayans' contract did end up paying him six figures to not actually appear in Batman Forever.

Superman Lives

Nic Cage dressed as Superman

Originally planned to begin production in 1998, Superman Lives is not only Burton's most infamous unrealized movie project, it's also one of the most infamous movie development disasters in history. That's partly thanks to the fact that Kevin Smith wrote the script - originally titled Superman Reborn - and as he's wont to do, Smith has since spilled the beans on the entire debacle publicly. A feature-length documentary called The Death of Superman Lives was also released in 2015, with participation from Smith, Burton, and almost star Nicolas Cage. To make an exceedingly long story short, producer Jon Peters was in control of Superman's movie rights by that point, meaning everything had to go through him.

It was Smith who made the suggestion that Burton should direct, and he agreed to do so. Unfortunately, both men had massive creative disagreements with Peters, and Smith and Burton weren't exactly on the same page either, with the director immediately having Smith's script rewritten by a new writer, leading to huge changes to the story. After a year or so of wrangling, Warner Bros. put Superman Lives on hold, and Burton departed, leaving quite frustrated that he'd wasted so much time on the unfinished project. The movie would, of course, never get made, with a new Superman movie not finally materializing until Bryan Singer's Superman Returns released in 2006. As recently as 2019, Tim Burton has said that he has no plans to ever venture back into the world of cinematic superheroes, and after what happened with Superman Lives, it's easy to understand why. If nothing else, at least Burton's Batman will return when Keaton appears in DC's multiverse-bending The Flash movie.

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