George Clooney playfully shuts down Batman return rumours after The Flash

George Clooney made a surprising return to the DC Universe this summer, reprising his role as Bruce Wayne in a cameo appearance in The Flash. However, the acclaimed actor has now confirmed that his return as Batman was a one-time occurrence, citing a lack of requests for an encore.

Clooney famously portrayed Bruce Wayne/Batman in Joel Schumacher's 1997 film, Batman & Robin, a movie that earned a notorious reputation as one of the worst superhero films ever made. The actor has been vocal about his dissatisfaction with the film, criticising both the screenplay and his performance.

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In June, Clooney made an unexpected return to the role of Bruce Wayne in the final moments of The Flash. The cameo occurred as Ezra Miller's Barry Allen, having returned to his own Earth and timeline, speaks with Bruce Wayne on the phone. The twist reveals Clooney, not Ben Affleck, playing Batman as Barry expected.

During the Los Angeles premiere of his latest film, The Boys in the Boat, Clooney was asked by The Hollywood Reporter whether his appearance in The Flash signalled a potential return to the iconic role. In response, Clooney laughed and confirmed that it was indeed a one-time occurrence. He humorously noted, "Somehow there were not a lot of requests for me to reprise my role as Batman, I don’t know why."

WION's review of The Flash was positive. It read, "Christina Hodson's script struck a nice balance of the dark and light tones, I thought, and was able to incorporate moments of intensity and gravity without losing the overall sense of fun and adventure. One aspect that stood out to me was the film's unwavering heart and humour. Miller was, and I cannot stress this enough, brilliant as the two quite distinct versions of the speedster superhero, and nicely evoked that contrast between a veteran Flash and a kid learning to deal with his new superpowers."