Michael Keaton says putting Batman costume back on for The Flash was 'weirdly and ironically easy'

Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight? Michael Keaton has, and what's more: he finally went on the record to confirm that he'll be swooping back into the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman for next year's standalone Flash movie from It director, Andy Muschietti. By the sound of it, Keaton's already shot most, if not all, of his scenes for the character he hasn't played in almost 30 years.

Collider got the scoop while catching up with the veteran actor during a virtual press interview for his new movie, The Protégé. When asked what it was like putting the Tim-Burton-era costume on again, he answered, "Weirdly and ironically easy. A little bit emotional and just a rush of memories."

He continued: "Without giving anything away — because I can't — the first ... introduction is so good, that when we walked on and started talking about a couple of shots and angles, I went, 'Whoa, this is big. This is great.' I don't mean for me, I mean the imagery is really great and reminiscent, to some degree, of Tim Burton."

Speaking with Jake's Takes, Keaton said something similar: "It was shockingly normal and it was weird. I went, 'Ohhh...Oh yeah, that's right.' But also as you then start to play the scenes, it was like a lot of memories. A lot of really interesting sense memories, actually."

He then pretended to have connectivity issues after being asked if he'd said the words "I'm Batman" yet.

Keaton will be one of at least two Batmen in the film. Ben Affleck is set to reprise his Caped Crusader role from the SnyderVerse one last time as a mentor figure to Ezra Miller's Barry Allen. As we learned during the first day of DC FanDome last summer, Affleck's version of the character is responsible for designing the main hero's flashy (some pun intended) new suit.

Written by Christina Hodson (Birds of Prey), the film's script was inspired by the Flashpoint storyline, in which Barry inadvertently prevents the existence of the Justice League by going back in time to stop his mother's homicide. "The cinematic multiverse is gonna be born out of this movie. It's born out of Barry's story," Hodson said at FanDome. 

"By opening that door that Flashpoint did in the comics, all of these stories and characters can start to collide," added Miller.

Other supporting cast members include Ron Livingston (Henry Allen), Maribel Verdú (Nora Allen), Kiersey Clemons (Iris West), and Sasha Calle (Supergirl). The Flash will break the sound barrier — and every law of physics known to man — when it speeds into theaters on Nov. 4, 2022.