Artwork depicting a Robin for Michael Keaton's Dark Knight makes it increasingly likely Joel Schumacher’s Batman movies won't be canon in the DCEU. Following a 30-year hiatus, Keaton reprises the role of Batman in The Flash. He will also appear in Batgirl, and the HBO Max movie teases his Batman didn't always work alone.
Keaton delivered a highly influential take on the Dark Knight in Tim Burton’s Batman and Batman Returns, which forever changed the perception of comic book movies. Burton and Keaton abandoned the character when Warner Bros. moved the franchise away from its dark, Gothic tone into lighter territory. Joel Schumacher’s Batman movies were criticized for their campiness, although they did introduce Chris O'Donnell's Robin and Alicia Silverstone's Batgirl. However, these interpretations of the characters will likely be erased from DCEU canon.
It was previously reported that The Flash will ignore Schumacher’s Batman movies, instead directly continuing Keaton's story. Filming is currently underway on Batgirl and a set photo teases Keaton's Robin, with an in-universe mural indicating the Schumacher version isn't canon to Keaton's Batman. Although Schumacher's Batman movies are in stark contrast to Burton's tone, they were always intended as sequels. The DCEU seems eager to finally rewrite Keaton's legacy and retcon the Bat-Family.
Schumacher’s Batman Forever introduced a neon-drenched Gotham that was more cartoonish than the macabre, noir style of Burton. This was expanded on with the notorious Batman & Robin, its overt humor and wacky characterization exacerbating the jarring departure from Burton's Batman movies. Schumacher's films have always felt like a different universe, if not for a few connections to Keaton's Batman. Michael Gough's Alfred Pennyworth and Pat Hingle's Commissioner Gordon appeared in all four films, ensuring there was at least some continuity. There were also brief but indirect references to Burton's movies, with Val Kilmer's Batman Forever role implying that his parents were murdered by the Joker (Jack Nicholson). Despite these loose connections, Schumacher's two Batmans never matched Keaton. Schumacher's more notable addition to the series was O'Donnell's Dick Grayson/Robin, but Batgirl's in-universe artwork teases Keaton's Robin won't be the same version.
The Batgirl mural depicts a younger Batman with a modified suit, while Robin's costume appears much closer to his comic counterpart than in Schumacher’s Batman movies. This Boy Wonder is also younger than Chris O’Donnell’s Dick Grayson, and he isn't the Robin from the Batman 1989 comic continuation. It’s more likely Schumacher’s films will be retconned in favor of a new interpretation that more closely aligns with the tone of Keaton’s Dark Knight. Further, Dick is often romantically linked to Barbara Gordon, and O’Donnell would be too old to ever introduce this plotline in the DCEU. The Flash and Batgirl need to demonstrate how much has changed for Keaton’s vigilante since Batman Returns and starting afresh with a new Robin would provide a compelling angle that teases unexplored stories in the intervening years. The mural is clearly from the Dark Knight’s prime, so Keaton’s Robin might not even appear in Batgirl. He could be retired, estranged from Batman and working alone as Nightwing (like O'Donnell and Schumacher's abandoned spin-off), or even dead.
Robin’s demise was a crucial part of Affleck’s Batman backstory. However, if Affleck permanently exits the role after The Flash, the DCEU might choose to finally capitalize on this plotline via Keaton’s Robin. J.K. Simmons is returning as Gordon in Batgirl, so it’s reasonable to assume Keaton’s universe could merge with the existing DCEU. This doesn't mean O’Donnell’s Robin needs to be forgotten completely. The Multiverse concept means revisiting his version is always a possibility, but removing Schumacher’s Batman movies from DCEU canon is the best decision. An appearance from O’Donnell could be fun and even salvage part of Schumacher’s universe, but giving Michael Keaton's Batman his own Robin would lend greater meaning to his return.
