The Big Picture

Akiva Goldsman confirms the existence of the Schumacher cut of
Batman Forever
, sharing insights on its darker tone and unfinished elements.
Goldsman hopes to honor Joel Schumacher by resurrecting the film, but completion is stalled due to Warner Bros. sale.

Batman Forever
is streaming on Max now.

Joel Schumacher is considered not only one of the most beloved American filmmakers of all time but also someone who revitalized the Batman franchise with his film Batman Forever. At the Producers on Producing Panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2024, hosted by Collider’s Steve Weintraub, Schumacher’s friend and screenwriter of the film, Akiva Goldsman, shared some insight about the Schumacher cut of the film and the efforts he’s gone through to bring it to life. And this news goes harder than Batman’s bat nipples.

Goldsman confirmed whether or not the Schumacher cut of Batman Forever was even real. “Yes, it does exist,” he said before giving more details about the mysterious movie. “There is a preview called ‘Preview One.’ Most of the material that is available is put back together. There’s not a lot out there that folks haven’t seen that you couldn’t cobble [together].”

After his friend Schumacher passed away in 2020, Goldsman wished to honor his friend. He explained, “I did talk to Warner [Bros]. This was one administration ago. My fantasy was to try and resurrect [Batman Forever] as a sort of celebration with Joel after he died.”

Bringing the Schumacher Cut to Life

Cape Crusader fans might be curious about what might be in this version of Batman Forever. “It was darker,” Goldman shared his insight on the film he’d seen. “Bruce was haunted by his past. He felt guilt. It’s all the stuff you read. None of that is mysterious. It was a more modern interpretation of the narrative, and what’s not dissimilar to those [stories] that we sort of caught up with now. I’ve seen it. It was put back together.”

The film, which starred Val Kilmer, Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey, Nicole Kidman, and Chris O’Donnell, would still have work to complete before any Schumacher cut could be released. Goldman listed what still needed to be completed, saying, “There’s some visual effects that need to be finished. There would be some music that would have to be if not re-scored or rewritten. The whole soup to nuts was about a million bucks. They were on the verge of doing it and then Warner got sold again. There’s a-whole-nother DC.”

With Warner Bros. and Discovery in talks for a potential breakup, the future of the Schumacher cut of Batman Forever is back in limbo but not dead. Goldsman not ready to give up on his friend’s film, “Once the new DC world is moving forward, I will bat my eyes with everybody again and see if once more we can answer that.”

Batman Forever Release Date June 16, 1995 Runtime 121 minutes Writers Bob Kane , Lee Batchler , Janet Scott Batchler , Akiva Goldsman Studio Warner Bros. Tagline Courage now, truth always…. Expand

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