Batman (1989)

Batman Movie Poster

With all the talk of Ben Affleck being cast as the new Batman in the upcoming Man of Steel sequel. I thought of what went on with the first Batman movie and it's casting. Granted I was was younger when this film came out, but I do remember the commotion & anticipation that preceded it. Imagine if we had the social media back then that we have today.

When comic book fans found out that Michael Keaton was starring in the lead role there was an uproar. 50,000 protest letters were sent to Warner Brother, even Bob Kane questioned the casting. Keaton was known as only doing comedies. While Mr.Mom and Beetlejuice helped to promote Keaton's career, it almost cost him this role. I went and saw it with just about my whole family. We went in a red Chevy station waggon, my cousins and I were in the back rolling around as we went to see it at the mall. I remember hearing the adults talk about how it probably not be any good because Keaton was Batman, and the only reason they would go see it was because of Jack Nicholson. The kids knew why we wanted to see it BATMAN! We had the toys, the comics the pillows and sheets we knew what lay ahead.

The Batman


Did it surprise you that the original casting was as controversial?
What do you think about Ben Affleck in this role?