Batman Continues is a 1994 American superhero film directed by Tim Burton and written by Sam Hamm, based on the DC Comics character Batman by Bob Kane and Bill Finger and the third installment of Warner Bros.' initial Batman film series, it is a sequel to Batman Returns. In the film's plot, the superhero vigilante Batman comes into conflict with Harvey Dent / Two-Face, who seeks to replace him as the protector of Gotham City. Batman seeks aid from a teenage mechanic named Drake Winston —who is operating as a masked vigilante known as Robin—and from the return of Selina Kyle as Catwoman. The cast includes Michael Keaton, Marlon Wayans, Michelle Pfeiffer, Billy Dee Williams, Michael Gough, Pat Hingle, Michael Murphy, Pat Corley, Keri Russell, Jon Polito, William Smith, and Kelly McGillis.
Story[]
One Halloween night, during a thunderstorm, in Earth-89, Gotham City, New York, America, after the mysterious disappearance of Oswald Cobblepot, Mayor Roscoe Jenkins, Governor Ed Gilroy, Commissioner James Gordon, Captain John Maitland, Councilwoman Mary Richardson, Councilman Donald Minors, Assistant District Attorney Arthur Reeves, and District Attorney Harvey Dent, an African-American man with who resembled Billy Dee Williams were called over to Arkham State Hospital by Dr. Boggs, who had startling news for them. As the city officials passed through the cells of Arkham State Hospital by Dr. Boggs, they encountered an inmate who resembled Christopher Llyod who had an unhealthy obsession for riddles, Gordon's daughter Eileen Gordon who had an unhealthy obsession with the game 'Hangman', and Oswald Cobblepot's nephew Chip Shreck who suffered a nervous breakdown after his father died.
Dr. Boggs took the officials to the infirmary where a patient who was thought to be dead was still alive and in a full body cast. The patient was Jack Napier, otherwise known as the Joker. Harvey Dent was furious by this and demanded to know from Joker how he was still alive. But Joker said nothing and couldn’t resist chuckling at Dent. Commissioner Gordon was confused by this because over a year ago, during the summer, Gordon saw the Joker fall to his death from the Gotham Cathedral, a 500-story building, and Dr. Boggs signed the Joker’s death certificate. Boggs admitted that when he signed the Joker’s death certificate, the Joker showed faint signs of life. However, the Joker showed severe brain damage because of the fall. There was no way he could function as a human being again. Dr. Boggs then argued that he was telling the truth when he signed the Joker’s death certificate. However, Mayor Jenkins pointed out that the doctor thought wrong. Joker then revealed that he was dead once and that it was very liberating, so people should think of it as therapy. Joker then suddenly burst into laughter.
A week later, the Joker was put on trial for his crimes. At the Hall of Justice, Bruce Wayne was having a meeting with Harvey Dent, who was revealed to have been his college roommate. Bruce asked Dent how Metropolis was since Dent was there with his fiance Gilda visiting her family during the Christmas holidays. Dent felt that he shouldn't have left Gotham to deal with its own problems since Cobblepot was terrorizing the city at the time, but had the pleasure of meeting Superman, the protector of Metropolis who had a red and blue costume complete with a red cape as well as an "S" emblem on his chest. Bruce witnessed a lot of bizarre things in his life but refused to believe Superman was real. Superman had been active since 1978, but Bruce dismissed Superman as just a fictional character that Clark Kent and Lois Lane made up at the Daily Planet to sell newspapers. Bruce then argued with Dent that Batman was the original vigilante, not Superman. Dent knew that Bruce Wayne funded Batman which was the reason why he called him over to his office for a meeting. To Dent, “Batman” was a SWAT team that answered to Jim Gordon which Bruce financed supplied equipment to. Bruce wanted Dent to continue to have that assumption. Dent warned Bruce that because Batman blew up Axis Chemicals, the Joker might use this to get the case against him dismissed. Dent wished that Bruce had told him that Axis Chemicals was manufacturing the Smylex poison so that Dent could send a team there once he got a warrant signed. Bruce pointed out that Carl Grissom had several city officials and law enforcement officers on his payroll. When the Joker killed Grissom and took over, those city officials and law enforcement officers started working for him. So, therefore, Joker would’ve been ready if Bruce had tipped off Dent about Axis Chemicals. Dent then argued that they have laws for a reason and that the Mayor’s office would’ve bargained with the Joker to get him to stop. However, Bruce argued that the Joker didn’t care about money. Dent then argued that he was just the D.A, he didn’t have access to all of Bruce’s expert sources. Because there was now a Mexican standoff, Bruce walked off fuming. Dent hung back for a moment and then turned down the hall to prosecute the Joker.
The Joker was represented by his wimpy lawyer J.B Luce, Judge Drake was presiding over the trial, and Harvey Dent was the prosecutor. Bruce Wayne decided to not attend the trial but instead watch it from his home. Joker was wheeled into the courtroom in a full body cast because of all his bones being broken. Dent charged Joker with the unlawful possession of chemical weapons, mass murder, and destruction of private property. The Joker used Smylex gas to taint Gotham’s beauty products and Dent had the chemical formulas to prove it as well as the Joker admitted to it in his commercial. As for mass murder, it was to the people who died from the Joker tainting several beauty products and for murdering members of the Grissom Crime Family such as Carl Grissom, Vinnie Ricorso, and Antonine Rotelli. Dent had media footage of Joker killing Ricorso at City Hall by using a sharp pen to slice the mobster’s throat. As for the destruction of private property, Joker vandalized several paintings at a museum owned by Grissom. Dent decided to use Vicki Vale, a shrewd prize-winning photojournalist that became the object of obsession for the Joker while she was dating Bruce, as a witness. Bruce identified Vicki while watching the Joker’s trial on television. Bruce and Vicki dated, but they eventually separated when Vicki was unable to deal with Bruce’s duality. Vicki testified about her experiences with the Joker such as watching him vandalize paintings, how she was saved by Batman, watching Joker poison the crowd with his Smylex gas at the 200th-anniversary festival, being taken hostage by the Joker, and Batman saving her again. Dent smugly grinned at this since Vicki was confirming what Dent already said at the trial. Harvey Dent was an ambitious man and by this time of next year, prosecuting the Joker could make him the new Attorney General of the New York state. Dent then called Joker over to the witness stand and much to Dent’s surprise and against Luce’s wishes, Joker pleaded guilty to all of his crimes. Joker then told everyone in the court that Batman made him do this. Joker angrily explained that Batman made him like this by dropping him into a vat of nuclear waste. Joker tried to get over it, and he did, but Batman made him do all those things. Bruce was annoyed by this as he watched the trial. Bruce will admit it: Batman made Jack Napier into the Joker, but Jack Napier made him into Batman when he killed his parents. Joker revealed to the court that he knows who Batman is, he found out who Batman was right after that sideshow phony ran off with his date from the museum. Dent questioned Joker as to why he didn’t go after Batman the moment he found out who he was under the mask. Joker then replied that it was because it didn’t matter. If Joker killed the man behind the mask or revealed Batman’s identity to the world, then Batman might stop what he was doing, and then that wouldn’t be fair to the Joker since Joker wouldn’t have anyone to play with anymore. Bruce then started to wonder if Joker really did know who he was or if he was just trying to mess with everyone. Joker will admit it: he did some terrible things, but he wanted to be here today to tell everyone that he knew that Batman was somewhere in the audience because there was no way that he would come into court and Batman wouldn’t be here. With one part of his body that was still working, Joker pressed a little trigger to a bomb blowing himself, the witnesses, Judge Drake, the reporters, his lawyer, and everything else to smithereens. Bruce stood up upon watching this on television and was left mourning Vicki’s death in the explosion while Alfred was horrified by it. Harvey Dent was the only survivor of the explosion except that half his face and body were badly burned in the explosion. As Harvey Dent was being rolled away to the hospital on a stretcher, he told Commissioner Gordon that Batman made Joker do this before passing out.
Later at Gotham General, the doctor removed the bandages that Harvey Dent was wearing. The doctor confessed that there would be some scarring. When the bandages were gone, the doctor and nurse backed away in horror. Dent angrily demanded a mirror. Gilda Gold, Dent's fiance, walked down the hall to Dent's room carrying flowers for Dent. All of a sudden, Gilda heard Dent screaming in horror and saw Dent bolting from his room, clutching his face. Becoming concerned for Dent, Gilda asked him what happened. Dent turned around and revealed that one side of his body was scarred by the bombing, making him half-human and half-monster. When Gilda saw Dent's half-human and half-monster-like appearance, she collapsed into a dead faint. Dent walked toward Gilda and muttered a rueful farewell to her. Dent made his way out the window of the hospital. Captain Maitland and several GCPD patrolmen led discovered Dent fleeing the hospital and chased him into the subway system. Dent then ran in front of a moving train. Maitland assumed that Harvey Dent was killed by the passing train, but Dent survived by hiding against the wall. Going further into the tunnels, Harvey Dent made his way to an underground railway station that was abandoned in Burnside, a black neighborhood where he grew up in. Dent noted that the ground in the abandoned underground railway station he was in was cold and decided to sleep on it. As Harvey Dent went to sleep on the ground that was cold, a single tear escaped his eye. Dent then went to sleep as his eyes closed for sleep.
Six months later, Bruce Wayne was alone in the Batcave reading a file he had on Selina Kyle. On the screen of his computer, there were pictures of Harvey Dent and Selina Kyle. Selina Kyle was once the timid secretary of retail mogul Max Shreck. One night, Selina stuck her nose where it shouldn’t have been and read the protected files that Max had on his plans to build a powerplant to drain Gotham of its electricity. Max wanted the plant built as a means of proving a legacy for his Chip as Max lacked confidence in Chip to build his endeavors. Fearing Selina would let it slip, Max pushed her out a window to her death. Selina died but was revived by an army of stray cats. Donning a black vinyl costume and a whip, Selina Kyle declared she was Catwoman and swore to get revenge on Max. Max, on the other hand, manipulated his brother Oswald Cobblepot, the man of the sewers, into becoming a mayoral prospect by advising the Red Triangle Circus Gang to wreak havoc on Gotham. Cobblepot's candidacy lasted temporarily when Batman exposed a damaging recording to the public about Cobblepot insulting the people of Gotham. This forced Cobblepot to revert to his monstrous ways and retreat into the sewers. Max abandoned Cobblepot at the last moment and Cobblepot retaliated by kidnapping him at his ball and taking Max to the Arctic Zoo, intending to drown Max in a vat of toxic waste that Max dumped into the sewers. Before Cobblepot could do that, Selina electrocuted her boss to death. Selina hadn’t been seen since then and not even by her mother. Bruce went to search for Selina in her apartment in Luxury Park Towers only to find it had been ransacked which Bruce guessed was probably by her given the way that Max treated her. Selina’s landlord went as far as to report her apartment being vacant. Bruce opted to recall these events by taking one of Cobblepot's umbrellas as a trophy. That umbrella Bruce took from Cobblepot was decorated with a spiral that resembled those hypnodisks Bruce saw in comics and magazines as a boy. Looking at the umbrella he took, Bruce started to wonder out loud where Selina was. As for Harvey Dent, he escaped from Gotham General after being blown up by his parents’ murderer, whom Bruce wished could have stayed dead when he dropped him off at the Gotham Cathedral a year ago. Harvey escaped from the hospital after knocking out a security guard for his keycard and stealing a bottle of painkillers. Harvey hadn’t been seen since then but was nicknamed ‘Two-Face’ by the cops and considered armed as well as dangerous. Bruce looked at an old news report of him, Harvey Dent, and Harvey’s fiance Gilda Gold raising two hundred thousand dollars for charity. Brue looked at the picture of him, Gilda, and Harvey, wondering out loud where his old friend was. Bruce’s investigation into the disappearances of Harvey Dent and Selina Kyle led him to fully become a creature of the night. In the Batcave, Bruce slept during the day. In the Batcave, Bruce ate all his meals there. In the Batcave, Bruce only came out at night as Batman. Bruce never even set foot on Wayne Manor. Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce’s butler who raised him, started to consider this behavior of Bruce to be extremely unhealthy. Alfred feared that Bruce would completely alienate his public life. However, to Alfred’s relief, Bruce would only make an exception to visit Gilda. Bruce decided that he was going to go visit Gilda.
In African-American neighborhood called Burnside, there was an underground railway station that Two-Face was hiding. Two-Face referred to the underground railway station as his "penthouse suite", Two-Face was sleeping on the floor while having a dream of an alternate reality. In that reality, Harvey Dent managed to evacuate everyone from the courthouse, with only the Joker blowing himself up. Because of this, Dent was asked by the state to run for governor rather than attorney general and Dent agreed to it. Dent blamed Batman for creating the Joker and vowed to take down the vigilante as well as Bruce for funding the vigilante. Harvey Dent turned against Commissioner Gordon when Gordon refused to help him go after Batman. So because Gordon refused to help him, Dent concluded that “Batman” was a SWAT team that answered to Gordon because there was no way one man could take that sort of punishment. Governor Dent managed to shut down the Batmen and dismiss Gordon as commissioner in favor of Maitland. During this time, Bruce admitted that if Dent was around, then there would be no need for a “Batman”. Dent knew that Bruce would face charges for financing a vigilante team of mercenaries, but Dent hoped to get Bruce off with time already served, or at least by giving him a pardon. Then all of a sudden, Dent encountered a man named Charlie, who was his childhood friend, who appeared out of nowhere. Charlie gave Dent a coin and told him to flip it.
In a penthouse apartment overlooking Gotham, Bruce Wayne was inside looking pitifully down on a crib where a baby of African-American origin named Dexter was sleeping peacefully. The mother of baby Dexter was Gilda Gold and the father was Two-Face, except that Two-Face didn’t know that he had a son. Last Halloween, Gilda found out that she was pregnant and wanted to tell her fiance Harvey Dent about it. However, because Dent was preparing to prosecute the Joker for his crimes in court, Gilda decided to tell him after the trial. Because Dent got blown up by the Joker during the trial and escaped from the hospital, Gilda never got the chance to tell her fiance about the baby. After Bruce found out that Gilda was pregnant with baby Dexter, he immediately got her a penthouse and paid for everything to support baby Dexter. After Commissioner Gordon found out that Gilda was pregnant with baby Dexter, he immediately arranged police protection for her in case Two-Face or Carmine Falcone tried to harm them by assigning Harvey’s childhood friend Charlie to protect them. Carmine Falcone had made a power grab for control of Gotham after Carl Grissom died at the hands of the Joker. If Carl Grissom were still alive, he would whimper in fear of Carmine Falcone because of the amount of muscle and political power that Carmine had. Harvey Dent, before he learned that the Joker was still alive, targeted the city officials who were taking payoffs from Falcone. Although Carmine Falcone had no criminal record he commanded the heavy hitters of the underworld. Dent planned to bring them all down since he ambitiously thought it would enable him to become the new attorney general of New York the year after. Harvey Dent was an ambitious man and it was too bad that the Joker ruined his plans. If this incident with the Joker had not occurred, Carmine would already is behind bars. As Gilda was speaking to Charlie, Harvey’s childhood mentor, Bruce went to speak to Gilda about his offer. Bruce wanted to set Gilda someplace else, anywhere but Gotham. Gilda refused to leave Gotham since she wanted to find Harvey. However, Bruce was concerned that Harvey would try to harm Gilda. Gilda was offended by that statement since Harvey Dent was her fiance, and the father of her son, and she refused to let him suffer alone. Charlie, alongside Gilda, was offended by this statement since Harvey would never do that and was just going through a hard time because of what the Joker did to him. Similar to Harvey, Gilda considered Batman to be responsible for the Joker’s existence. If Batman was not around, Jack Napier would not have fallen into that vat of chemicals and Gilda would still have a family. Soon, baby Dexter started crying because of the loud voices and Gilda went to comfort her son. Bruce looked at his watch and realized that it was time to leave. Before Bruce did, he turned and told Gilda and Charlie that he hoped they were right. Gilda then smiled at Bruce and nodded. Bruce then left.
While sleeping, Two-Face began to hallucinate another Harvey Dent who claimed to be from the world he dreamed of. The other Harvey Dent showed him the possibilities that Two-Face avoided. On Earth 89, Harvey Dent lost his mother to a drunk driver when he was seven years old. On another earth, six-year-old Harvey Dent died in his mother’s place from a drunk driver. On Earth-89, when Harvey Dent was in college with Bruce and Gilda, Harvey had a choice to study with them for Professor Peters’ test or go out drinking with Curtis. Harvey chose to study with Bruce and Gilda while Curtis got arrested by Gordon for stealing from a liquor store. On another earth, Harvey chose to go drinking with Curtis and they both got arrested by Gordon for robbing a liquor store. Harvey and Curtis then had to face jail time for what they did. Believing these split possibilities were out of his hands, Two-Face decided to put himself in control of his destiny. After waking up from his dream, Two-Face took the double-headed coin that Charlie gave as a gift when they grew up together in Burnside and scratched one of the sides with a nail file that he took from Gilda to remember her.
Later, Batman was in the neighborhood that Two-Face and Charlie grew up in called Burnside. Speaking to Commissioner Gordon through an encrypted channel, they both agreed that this is most likely where Two-Face could be hiding. Gordon wished he never set foot in Arkham Asylum since he had to face his daughter again after all the suffering that she caused for him and her daughter Barbara. Batman urged Gordon to not abandon Eileen since she is still Barbara’s mother and Eileen needed help. Regardless, Gordon wished he could’ve been trick-or-treating with Barbara instead of learning that Joker was still alive. Gordon warned Batman that Captain Maitland organized the GCPD to be after him because of the Ice Princess’ death, which Cobblepot, Catwoman, and Max Shreck framed him for. Maitland had a personal stake in this since the Ice Princess was his niece. Suspecting that Maitland will eventually compromise their channel, Gordon advised Batman to stay off the streets before shutting off communication.
While searching for Harvey at Burnside, Batman was drawn to a robbery being made at a corner store in the neighborhood. Captain Maitland was there with his men and they arrested the owner for having a firearm, but the owner claimed someone had robbed his store. Batman followed the thief to an apartment and discovered that the thief stole diapers from the store for his sister, baby Nyesha. The youth was forced to look after his baby sister Nyesha right after their mother abandoned them. All of a sudden, Batman heard a voice outside claiming to be the mother. But when Batman went outside, he was assaulted by a teenager in a costume who called himself Robin. Robin knocked Batman into an alleyway, Robin went back into the apartment and handed the thief a ten-dollar bill to pay for the diapers he stole and then left before the diaper thief could thank him. Batman was then discovered by Captain Maitland and his men. Wanting to escape Maitland, Batman pretended to surrender before tossing several flashbang capsules from his utility belt. However, Maitland was still shooting at Batman. When the diaper thief that Robin had given money went out to investigate, Captain Maitland accidentally shot him. Batman tried to save the diaper thief but the diaper thief fell to his death. The next morning at Wayne Manor, Alfred learned what had happened to Nyesha’s brother, the diaper thief, on the news and went to the Batcave to search for Bruce. There, Alfred found Batman in the Batcave. Batman sat dejectedly in the Batcave, sadly pondering what he did wrong. Batman had failed to save a life and now because of him, a baby girl was an orphan. Batman admitted to Alfred that this time, he did screw up.
Maitland was now under investigation for what happened and Gordon feared that Maitland might not face any jail time, which would anger the Burnside Council which Harvey Dent was a part of. While meeting with the Burnside Council in the Royal Autobody garage, the people of Burnside planned to protest the shooting and Gordon promised to provide safe passage for the protestors. Charlie and Gilda also decided to take part in the protests themselves, wanting to target the GCPD for their racial and political failures for Burnside. At the Burnside Demonstrations, Commissioner Gordon denounced the violence at Burnside and promised to investigate Maitland as well as the officers who were with him that night. The following day, Commissioner Gordon was interviewed by journalists while headed to his office. Gordon was then confronted by his old partner and Maitland’s right hand man Lieutenant Eddie Bullock. Although Bullock wasn’t corrupt, he still felt he and the force were being betrayed by Charlie and Gordon. On Alfred’s advice, Bruce decided to turn to philanthropy just as his parents have. Because of this, Bruce had Gilda and Charlie make arrangements for him to meet with the Burnside Council in a gloomy garage in the neighborhood referred to as the Royal Autobody, which was owned by Harvey’s childhood mentor Jerome Otis. Jerome Otis served as a father figure for some of the children for Burnside. Among those children were future District Attorney Harvey Dent and future GCPD member Charlie. Harvey and Charlie spent their childhood in the Royal Autobody. Charlie would flip a coin that Harvey would later have to ensure that Harvey became up being a "big man" if the coin landed on heads. If the coin landed on tails, then Harvey would end up becoming a bum. The coin always landed on heads making Harvey believe that he'd actually be a "big man". Harvey was unaware of it at the time, but Charlie used a double-headed coin in every toss so that Harvey had confidence in himself. Harvey found what Charlie did after Charlie gave him the coin as a present. However, Harvey still trusted Charlie. Charlie was always a good friend to Harvey.
As Bruce was on his way to a meeting, he noticed a group of men being led by an individual named Dennis Barvel a.k.a Dominic Best. Barvel had a specialty in armed robbery. Barvel was thought to have been involved in at least a half dozen bank robberies. Barvel served four years for the robbery of a jewelry store. Recent surveillance reports had indicated that Dennis Barvel was planning a Captain job, but the target was unknown. Believing that he just found the target, Bruce immediately went into his car to don a black ski mask. Before Barvel could commit another jewelry store robbery, Catwoman intervened and attacked and took out the criminals, scarring their faces, including Barvel’s, so that she could track them easily. When Bruce arrived at the scene in a black ski mask, Catwoman remained there to greet him. Bruce was then startled to learn that Selina was still alive because he thought she was dead. Catwoman told Bruce that cats are only seen when they want to be. Catwoman sealed Barvel and his gang inside a dumpster. Because Bruce had to be at other places, Catwoman requested that they meet at the place where they first met. Bruce agreed to it, but before he left, Catwoman stopped him. Catwoman insisted that Bruce kiss her before he left and Bruce did.
At the meeting, Bruce was distracted by his kiss with Selina. Gilda noted that Bruce was distracted, but Bruce immediately snapped out of it. With the Burnside Council, Bruce decided to arrange for low-income students in the neighborhood to have post-secondary education with full scholarships. This would happen until Bruce ran out of money, which seemed unlikely given how Wayne Motors is a successful Wayne family business. The Burnside Council were hesitant to trust Bruce since they were let down before by Max Shreck since there were rumors that Max worked with Penguin from behind the scenes to take over the city. Not only that, but the Burnside Council also suspected that Bruce was doing this to make headlines like Max had because Bruce also did business with Max. The Council questioned Bruce as to why he was suddenly interested in Burnside and Bruce said it was because of the fact his friend Harvey was struggling in that neighborhood while studying to become a lawyer. The Burnside Council was taken aback by this since Harvey Dent was a well-respected figure in Burnside due to having grown up there. Bruce reassured the Council that he was nothing like Max and similar to all of the members as well as baby Nyesha, Bruce also lost his parents to gun violence which was why he sympathized with them. Gilda and Charlie began to vouch for Bruce to the Burnside Council. The Council believed that Bruce’s money can’t solve all their problems which Bruce agreed as well since systemic problems took generations to fix, but some problems can be fixed with money. Believing that Bruce did want to help them, the Burnside Council agreed to accept support from Wayne Motors. Drake Winston, an African-American teenager who worked inside the garage, overheard the whole meeting and thought poorly of Bruce, believing he was only doing philanthropy just to make headlines similar to what Carl Grissom and Max Shreck did. Drake disliked police officers and anyone who was not from Burnside. He also didn’t like Bruce because he was a Wayne.
When Charlie was driving Gilda back to her penthouse, Charlie began to believe that Bruce had a guilty conscience, making him feel sorry for him. Gilda became disgusted when she saw two children pretending to be Batman because to Gilda, Batman was the cause of all her problems and she hoped her son Dexter wouldn’t be influenced by Batman in any way. Charlie agreed with Gilda too because Batman was not well-liked by some people of Burnside due to beating up someone’s brother or father and then sending them to prison. While driving, Gilda recalled that Bruce mentioned baby Nyesha during the meeting and asked Charlie when the GCPD released her name. Charlie then realized that Bruce had access to private information as the GCPD never did, making Charlie wonder how Bruce knew about Nyesha. Gilda then shrugged it off by believing that Gordon must have told Bruce as Gordon was the first cop on the scene the night his parents were murdered. Charlie then concluded that this might have been the cause of Bruce knowing this.
In the meantime, Two-Face tracked down a member of the Joker Gang, a man named Karp, whom he tied to a chair. Two-Face wanted to know more about the Joker Gang, but when Karp refused, Two-Face used a coin. If the coin landed on heads, Two-Face would pay Karp “double”, but on tails, he would pay him “nothing”. The coin landed on heads and Two-Face decided to pay him “double”. With that incentive, Karp told Two-Face that the Joker Gang was just a group of individuals who wanted to dress up and cause problems for other people. Most members of the Joker’s original gang were either killed by Batman or in prison because of Gordon. Karp helped Two-Face arrange a meeting with members of the Joker Gang in the underground railway tunnels of Burnside, which Two-Face referred to as his “penthouse suite”. Two-Face was able to convince members of the Joker Gang to let him be their new leader because of a plan he had. If the plan succeeded, everyone would walk away with a fortune. If the plan didn’t succeed, there would be some good destructive fun. The Joker Gang agreed to let Two-Face be their new leader and Two-Face laughed when one of the members asked him who his tailor was.
Batman met with Catwoman near Shreck’s Department Store. Batman was concerned about what Catwoman did to Max Shreck since it led to his son Chip being sent to Arkham. However, Catwoman was unconcerned since Chip was a Shreck. Catwoman revealed she had returned to Gotham targeting white-collar criminals led by Carmine Falcone and was upset that Batman only took action against street crimes rather than the white-collar ones. Batman asked why the interest in Falcone, but Catwoman told Batman it was personal. When Carmine Falcone was making a movie for his company Falcone Pictures, he met her mother, a loudmouth bore who was a waitress at the time and got her pregnant with her. Rather than staying behind to be there for his pregnant lover, Carmine Falcone abandoned her. For years, all Selina knew about her father was that he had a lot of power and resided in Gotham. Carmine Falcone. Carmine 'The Roman' Falcone was a pig who ruled Gotham similarly to a dictator. Carmine Falcone made his fortune by making his own four brothers and two sisters penniless when he was younger. Carmine Falcone owed Selina a life that he removed from her, even more so than Max Shreck ever did. Ironically, Max Shreck was an obstacle in the rise of power for The Roman’s fast-growing criminal empire and Selina ended up doing her neglectful father a favor when she electrocuted Max to death. Catwoman first wanted to destroy her father, gut him like a pig, and then feed him to the cats. Catwoman also revealed that she had been speaking to a psychiatrist named Chase Meridian about her activities and that the mysterious Robin, whoever he was, was also having sessions with Dr. Meridian. However, Dr. Meridian wasn’t taking her sessions with Catwoman and Robin seriously. Batman and Catwoman then began flirting as well as romancing each other where Batman wanted to take Catwoman away from Gotham so he can have her all to himself for the week. Batman and Catwoman then stopped flirting with each other when a series of explosions started happening all over Gotham because of Two-Face and his gang. Two-Face flipped his coin to decide whether or not to continue fighting for “the soul of Gotham”. When the coin landed on tails, Two-Face smiled to himself and decided he wasn’t going to.
Batman and Catwoman both discovered that the explosions in the subways surrounded the police plaza. Two-Face sent his men to attack the GCPD and had snipers fire at civilians outside, shooting Mayor Jenkins in the shoulder while giving an interview with Alexander Knox. Inside the police plaza, Commissioner Gordon was disturbed to find the Joker Gang attacking the GCPD. Gordon then ran into his longtime friend and partner Eddie Bullock, who believed this was a paramilitary assault. Gordon told Bullock to leave while he rushed upstairs to activate the Bat signal so that he could summon Batman. Batman arrived on the roof to protect Commissioner Gordon while Catwoman took out the snipers. Along with the Joker Gang, Two-Face stole records that the police confiscated from Carl Grissom after the Joker’s arrest. Bullock and Maitland tried to stop Two-Face only for Two-Face to shoot Bullock in the chest. Batman and Gordon then arrived to join Maitland in his fight against Two-Face. Although Maitland blamed Batman for the death of his niece, the Ice Princess, he was still going to accept his help just this once. Gordon withdrew a firearm and ordered Two-Face to surrender. Batman withdrew a tranquilizer dart in case Two-Face proved to be uncooperative, but planned on talking him into surrendering. Batman tried to reason with Two-Face by mentioning his fiance Gilda. Upon Batman mentioning Gilda, Two-Face stopped what he was doing and became emotional. Batman explained that Gilda wanted Harvey to return to her and how she had been praying for it. However, Two-Face suddenly became furious and yelled at Batman to never mention her again. Maitland was about to take advantage of this to shoot Two-Face, however, Batman, who was protective over Harvey, fired the tranquilizing dart onto Maitland. Two-Face took Maitland hostage and promised to kill Maitland unless Batman and Gordon cooperated. Batman and Gordon were forced to stay behind to save Bullock, who was shot. When Gordon took Bullock outside for paramedics, Batman tried to leave through the back only to be surrounded by Charlie and the police. When Charlie saw Batman, he immediately accused the vigilante of leading the Joker Gang into the police plaza. Batman told Charlie to speak to Gordon, Gordon will explain to everyone that he didn’t do this. However, Charlie refused to listen and tried to arrest Batman. Catwoman then arrived to incapacitate them and Batman fled with her on foot. Charlie and the police tried to apprehend Batman and Catwoman only for them to vanish without a trace when they got into an alley.
In the Batcave, Catwoman revealed to Batman that Carl Grissom and her former boss Max Shreck knew each other. Shreck and Grissom both had dealings with each other, however, Grissom never trusted Shreck and kept dirt on Shreck in case Shreck betrayed them. Not only that, Grissom kept dirt on all the corrupt officials on his payroll. Carmine Falcone knew about Grissom’s evidence stash but was never able to find it since Harvey Dent found it back when he was district attorney. Two-Face stole that evidence stash and with that evidence, he now owned all the corrupt officials who were on Grissom’s payroll. Catwoman suggested that she and Batman both team up to get Grissom’s evidence stash because with it they can run Gotham instead of Falcone, whom she wouldn’t be caught dead with. Batman then touched Catwoman’s face gently and asked her if she ever wanted to have a normal life. In the morning, Two-Face sent $900,000 of Grissom’s money to the citizens of Burnside, whose homes and stores were damaged by the Red Triangle Gang last Christmas. Two-Face told Captain Maitland, who was handcuffed to a pole, about how Carl Grissom came to have his wealth. In 1880 when Gotham was first founded, the city treasury was robbed by men who displayed fantastic military precision. The city was bankrupt and out of desperation, Mayor Theodore Cobblepot, the great-grandfather of Oswald, turned to Charles Grissom for help. Charles agreed to bail Gotham out of bankruptcy if Mayor Cobblepot agreed to let him have all the contracts with the city, making Charles richer than others. Mayor Cobblepot was unaware of this, but Charles was the one who masterminded the robbery and Charles kept the money stolen from the city treasury for himself. When Carl Grissom became a high-powered mobster, Grissom thought he was untouchable by the law for being Charles’ great-grandson. Since all of Grissom’s wealth came from a crime against Gotham, Two-Face was going to return the money to Gotham like Robin Hood. Back when he was district attorney, Two-Face started a chain of evidence that showed Maitland was on Grissom’s payroll. So because Maitland was corrupt and since he tried to cover up shooting an unarmed diaper thief, Two-Face was going to have to use his lucky coin to decide Maitland’s fate. If the coins landed on heads, Maitland would live. If the coin landed on tails, Maitland would die. Maitland rudely told Two-Face to just kill him already since they both know he would have to do it soon. The coin then landed on heads so Maitland would have to live. Two-Face then helped Maitland to a ‘78 Domaine Dujac and a sandwich. Two-Face had to leave but left Maitland to listen to songs written by Two-Face and Commissioner Gordon’s favorite jazz musician: Ornette Coleman. The cuffed Maitland hated to admit it, but he found Ornette Coleman’s music to be enjoyable.
Two-Face, in his fancy Rolls Royce which he paid for with Grissom's money, was being chauffeured in the rainy streets of Gotham. Two-Face scanned the crowds and saw people socializing with one another, couples and friends, laughing and chatting. Two-Face thought back to how he wanted to see Gilda again. In Two-Face’s hand, was a bundle of roses for her. Two-Face then ordered the chauffeur to stop the car when he spotted Gilda on the streets, with an umbrella in her hand, on her way to meet with friends in a coffee shop. Two-Face stepped out of the car, pulled his hat down, and raised his trench coat to move through the crowd undetected. Two-Face tried to call out for Gilda but hesitated. Two-Face then pulled out a coin to decide whether to speak to Gilda or not. Surprisingly, despite being in a loud and crowded area, Gilda heard a coin flip and turned around hoping to find Harvey. Unfortunately for Gilda, Harvey wasn’t there. Gilda was then saddened by this and left. Two-Face was now in an alleyway, crouched down, behind a dumpster crying in the rain because the coin landed on the scarred side. So no, Two-Face wasn’t allowed to see Gilda because the coin said so.
Bruce believed that Two-Face was hiding somewhere in Burnside. To find him, he was going to need help from one of the Burnside residents who could help him: Robin. With help from Selina, Bruce deduced that Robin might be Drake Winston as Drake was also having sessions with Dr. Meridian. Alfred did research on Drake to find that the Winstons had their own motor company that employed many individuals from Burnside. However, the board members at Wayne Motors bought out that company and later closed it down, causing Drake to be homeless. Bruce then felt guilty for what happened with the Winstons since he felt he should’ve had a more active role in Wayne Motors. Bruce only took an active role in Wayne Motors when he learned that Max Shreck was trying to take over the city by making power grabs on Gotham’s commercial and industrial districts. Bruce then used Wayne Motors to oppose Max since he knew that Max was corrupt. But Bruce wished he could’ve done more at Wayne Motors for the Winstons. Bruce invited Drake to the Wayne Mansion for dinner. Once Drake arrived, Bruce wanted to make things right for what the board members at Wayne Motors did to the Winstons. Drake was still furious and produced a small revolver, intending to shoot Bruce. Bruce immediately attacked Drake, defending himself. Alfred heard fighting while he was downstairs washing the dishes and intervened with a rifle only to find Drake already on the ground because of Bruce. Bruce examined the small revolver that Drake had and found there were no bullets in it. Drake revealed that he suspected that Bruce was Batman because of his chin, the sudden interest in Burnside after Batman showed up, and because he had the money to finance Batman’s activities. Drake only attacked Bruce just to confirm his theory. Drake then revealed himself to be Robin. Bruce then decided to forgive Drake and treated him to dinner. Over dinner, Bruce asked Drake for help in finding Harvey Dent. Despite the fact that Harvey grew up in Burnside, Drake didn’t like him because of Dent’s association with the police. Drake reluctantly agreed to help and told Bruce about everyone in Burnside receiving money this morning, right after Two-Face stole Grissom’s money that the police seized. Drake suggested that Bruce search the underground railway tunnels of Burnside because they were abandoned. Bruce then took Drake to the Batcave where they saw Catwoman practicing her gymnastics. Drake was alarmed by this since he thought Catwoman was a rumor, which Catwoman debunked. Bruce showed Drake the equipment that he used as Batman, including the new Batmobile. Drake asked Bruce to let him help him in his vigilante activities as his sidekick, which Bruce agreed to.
Later in his lair, Two-Face told Maitland about how he tried to reach out to Gilda and how the coin said not to. Captain Maitland began to argue with Two-Face, especially when Two-Face began discussing chance, how it controlled everything, deciding whether a person lived or died and whether a person was noble or evil. Maitland refused to believe that and insisted that Harvey still had a choice. Two-Face became outraged by what Maitland said because choice was not real. How do you think Harvey Dent became Two-Face? What had he done to deserve this? He was a great district attorney. He wasn’t corrupt like Max Shreck. He never helped the mob launder their money unlike what Shreck did in his life. So how do you think he became like this? Because of chance. Maitland still refused to believe that, questioning if it was chance that made Harvey Dent become District Attorney and whether chance made Gilda fall in love with him. Two-Face angrily yelled that there was no such thing as choice. Emotionally breaking down, Two-Face believed that his disfigurement at the hands of the Joker impacted Gilda’s feelings for him. However, Maitland argued the Joker didn’t change Harvey, instead the Joker actually revealed who Harvey really was. Maitland suggested that Gilda was finally going to see Harvey for what he really was: a spineless opportunist with no real sense of morality, just a finger in the air to see which way the wind was blowing. Recalling how Maitland was like that also, Two-Face angrily withdrew a firearm and proceeded to shoot Maitland three times until he was dead. Maitland then began dying as blood came out of his mouth. As he was dying, Maitland reassured Two-Face that people will never forgive him for his actions. The good side of Two-Face was horrified by what the evil side had done since the coin said to let Maitland live. However, the evil side coldly told the good side that it didn’t matter. Batman then arrived telling Two-Face: “you need help, Harvey”.
Two-Face explained to Batman that he had him to thank for all of this. If Batman hadn’t gotten involved in his and Gordon’s war against Carl Grissom, then he never would’ve gotten his hands on Grissom’s evidence stash, which was now in his briefcase. That briefcase gave Two-Face more power than he had ever dreamed of and he was an ambitious man. Two-Face may not serve in heaven, but he can rule in hell. Two-Face attempted to escape from Batman with his briefcase only for Batman to tie him up with a roped Batarang. Refusing to be taken down, Two-Face detonated explosives hidden in the Station, causing Batman to be knocked unconscious. Two-Face looked over and saw that Batman’s mask was blown off revealing Batman to be Bruce Wayne. Two-Face was startled by this since he thought Batman was a team of mercenaries that Bruce financed and supplied weaponry to. Two-Face then withdrew a camera to take a picture of Bruce in costume. Two-Face then fled the scene when Catwoman and Robin arrived after following the money trail. Catwoman and Robin both decided to take Batman to Alfred for medical treatment. When they took Batman to Alfred, Alfred admitted that he had seen worse, but not much worse. Bruce later woke up in Wayne Manor to speak with Selina. Selina informed Bruce that his mask was blown up so Two-Face probably saw who he was. However, Bruce believed it didn’t matter since Harvey already knew who he was beforehand. Selina revealed to Bruce that she came back to Gotham and how Falcone was her neglectful father. Realizing that Selina intended to use Grissom’s evidence stash to get back at her father, Bruce began to contemplate abandoning the cowl so that he and Selina could have a life together. Drake was downstairs watching the news about Maitland’s death. According to reporter Alexander Knox, Maitland’s kidnapping was unnoticed by many until his body was recovered.
In a small back room in the evening, a mobster affiliated with Carmine Falcone and formerly Carl Grissom named Antonio Velasco, was playing cards. Antonio Velasco had a reputation for enjoying violence. Velasco started out as an enforcer involved in loan sharking for Grissom before Falcone pushed him into the drug trade. Velasco was puzzled when he fanned out five jokers as a card. One of the Joker’s goons then burst into the door with a gun in his hand. At Gotham Park, a costumed clown with a wheeled cart was filling balloons from a helium tank and passing them out to children. Salvatore Maroni, a mobster affiliated with Carmine Falcone and formerly Carl Grissom, strolled by. The clown offered Maroni a balloon, but Maroni politely declined. The clown then reached for a red metal tank, which was not a helium tank, but a flamethrower for Maroni. Two-Face had Velasco and Maroni killed by the Joker’s goons to show Falcone that he meant business for their audience today.
In Gotham City Hall, in his former office back when he was district Attorney, Two-Face called a meeting with Carmine Falcone and the corrupt officials on Falcone’s payroll. The corrupt officials on Falcone’s payroll were: Mayor Roscoe Jenkins, Governor Ed Gilroy, Senator Miller, Councilwoman Mary Richardson, Councilman Donald Minors, and the current District Attorney Arthur Reeves. When Carmine Falcone took over Carl Grissom’s operations, he was never able to find Grissom’s evidence stash. But now Two-Face had it in his possession. Donald Minors was a sixth-term councilman, who did a lot of his maneuvering behind the scenes and was one of the most powerful officials in the city council. Minors turned down numerous proposals to run for mayor. Minors was rumored to have ties to organized crime. With Grissom’s evidence stash, Two-Face confirmed that those rumors were true about Donald. Mary Richardson was the first-term councilwoman, a hard-hitting neighborhood leader elected because of a strong grass-roots campaign. People believed Mary to be far too ethical to ever gain power in Gotham’s cauldron of political corruption. However, with Grissom’s records, Two-Face can prove that notion about Mary to be false. Two-Face then questioned Mayor Roscoe Jenkins, whose shoulder was still injured because of a gunshot wound, as to why a liberal such as himself became corrupt. Mayor Jenkins admitted it was because he was done saving Gotham, which didn’t want to be saved. That was why Mayor Jenkins disapproved of Max Shreck’s proposal to build a power plant for the city. However, Two-Face recalled that Oswald Cobblepot, a mayoral prospect supported by Shreck, resembled a penguin. So if Shreck was willing to support someone like that to be the mayor who turned out to be a mobster, then Shreck was obviously up to no good. Two-Face then reprimanded Mayor Jenkins for not noticing that.
Back when he was Harvey Dent, Two-Face wanted to use his position as district attorney to improve Gotham and Burnside but was unable to because of corruption. For years, Carl Grissom has been running federal aid funds through a string of mobbed-up-front companies which resulted in millions in kickbacks for corrupt officials and less for the city. But now Two-Face had the power to make a real change because of Grissom's files. Two-Face warned the corrupt officials and mobsters in his room that if anything happened to him, then copies of Grissom's files will be leaked to the voters, the federal government, and whomever they were in bed with. Carmine Falcone agreed to it and reassured Two-Face to take it easy because they were all friends here. Two-Face wanted himself and the Joker’s men to be pardoned as well for all ongoing investigations into him to be canceled. Governor Gilroy promised to grant those pardons and Mayor Jenkins decided to cut Two-Face in on the money that was being laundered from Gotham. However, Two-Face insisted that all of the money be put into Gotham and that the gravy train stopped there. Two-Face wanted the laundered money to be used to increase teacher salaries, provide free medical treatments to those who couldn’t afford it, pay for the property damages made by the Red Triangle Gang last Christmas that left people homeless, to local makeshift shelters, and soup kitchens. They were also going to use Grissom and Shreck’s money as well to make those things happen since Grissom’s wealth came from one crime against Gotham in the 18th century and Shreck was responsible for the Red Triangle Gang’s attacks. Two-Face was glad that everyone else in the room was willing to cooperate, but Arthur Reeves refused. Reeves started yelling at everyone in the room for taking orders from Two-Face since they can easily turn his spine into a belt buckle. Mary tried to calm Arthur down only for Two-Face to suddenly withdraw his lucky coin. Two-Face then decided to flip his coin to make a decision. If the coin landed on heads, Two-Face would do something nice. If the coin landed on tails, Two-Face would do something maybe a little bit crazy. When the coin landed on heads, Two-Face decided to do something nice for the people of Gotham City. Two-Face then withdrew a firearm and shot Reeves in the head, alarming everyone in the room.
Lieutenant Eddie Bullock thought Batman was a freak and a menace, but only put up with him because of Commissioner James Gordon, his longtime friend and partner. Bullock wanted to arrest Two-Face and the Joker Gang for what occurred at the police plaza, but couldn’t do it now that Governor Gilroy had pardoned them. Bullock was the only one in the GCPD who knew about the secret channel that Gordon used to communicate with Batman, but reluctantly kept silent about it. Bullock considered Batman to be a menace and a freak, but Gordon said that Batman served a purpose and Bullock decided to go along with it out of respect for him. Bullock swallowed his pride and decided to discuss the incident with Batman alongside Gordon. Batman thought the police still blamed him for leading the attack on their plaza, but Gordon informed Batman that he told Charlie and the rest of the GCPD what happened at the plaza and that it was Harvey Dent who led the gang, not Batman. Bullock also told Charlie and the GCPD that it was Dent who shot him, not Batman. Bullock still had morals despite his disgust for Batman as Bullock didn’t want Batman blamed for actions he didn’t cause. Gordon urged Batman to find something on Two-Face immediately so that it wouldn’t matter if Governor Gilroy, whom Gordon and Bullock suspected to be corrupt, pardoned him or not. Bullock then told Batman and Gordon that Charlie went to confront Two-Face about his recent behavior, which Batman and Gordon considered to be a bad idea.
Two-Face went to meet with Charlie inside the Royal Autobody. Despite Two-Face claiming he got the money he spread to Burnside from the “Bruce Wayne Foundation”, Charlie knew very well the money came from evidence lockup in the GCPD. Most folks were so bad off in Burnside, that they have no concern as to where the money came from. Two-Face objected to this by arguing that the money was Carl Grissom’s wealth and Grissom only got his wealth because of his great-grandfather robbing the city treasury and then conning the mayor into giving all of the city contracts. Two-Face proclaimed himself to be Robin Hood. Charlie then called out Two-Face for attacking the police plaza, shooting Bullock, and using snipers to fire at the protestors standing up for Nyesha’s brother being shot. Two-Face then pleaded his case by claiming it was necessary and that he got real power now, so because of that, he can change Gotham, and make it better just like what he and Charlie always wanted. Charlie then began to consider himself a fool for ever believing in Two-Face. Two-Face then told Charlie to look at him. Because of the Joker blowing him up, it hurt whenever Two-Face talked, smiled, and breathed. Charlie then recalled his childhood back when he and Two-Face were friends, where Harvey Dent was the most handsome man in Burnside. Charlie would be jealous of Harvey since the girls swooned whenever Harvey smiled at them. All the girls then considered Gilda lucky when she began dating Harvey and eventually be engaged to him. To Charlie, Harvey Dent’s face would’ve carried anywhere, but sooner or later, you would get the face you deserve. Charlie then decided to call the Burnside Council to arrange actions against Two-Face. The good side of Two-Face didn’t want to kill Charlie as Charlie was his friend, but the evil side insisted it was what they had to do. Two-Face flipped his coin into the air to decide. If the coin landed on heads, Charlie would be spared. If the coin landed on tails, Charlie would die. The coin then landed on heads, prompting the reluctant Two-Face to withdraw a firearm and shoot Charlie in the back of his head.
Drake later showed up at the Royal Autobody for work and was horrified to find Charlie dead and Two-Face mourned Charlie’s murder. Two-Face gave Drake an envelope with $100 thousand so that Drake can support himself and his family because Drake used to steal from other people when living on the streets to survive before working at the Royal Autobody. However, Drake rudely refused the money and attacked Two-Face in anger for killing Charlie. Two-Face then fled onto the streets screaming for help, prompting the residents of Burnside, especially Drake’s classmates who were playing basketball, to come to his aid. Two-Face then pleaded for help by claiming that Drake shot Charlie when Drake rudely denied it and attacked Two-Face in front of everyone. The residents of Burnside then restrained Drake taking Two-Face’s word over his. When some of the Burnside residents went into the garage, they found Charlie dead and found money all over the floor. Believing that Drake killed Charlie for the money, the Burnside residents decided to turn him over to the police while one of them helped Two-Face over to his automobile. Two-Face then advised everyone to sit on Drake until the cops showed up.
In the Batcave, a bandaged and swollen Bruce spoke to Catwoman and Alfred about the recent murders: Arthur Reeves was found in a car trunk and now Charlie was shot down in a garage. Believing that Harvey was on a murder spree, Bruce decided that he had to warn Gilda about it in case Harvey tried to harm her, so Bruce would have to tell her everything. At Gilda’s penthouse, Bruce went to speak with her. Bruce then told Gilda everything: Bruce and Gilda were seated across each other on the couch where Bruce told her everything: about him being Batman, his fight with Captain Maitland in Burnside that led to baby Nyesha being without her brother, Harvey attacking the GCPD, Harvey killing Maitland, and Harvey killing Charlie then manipulating the Burnside residents into blaming Drake for it. Gilda was then shocked and horrified by all of this. Gilda blamed Batman for all of her problems and …..Batman was actually with her this whole time and she didn’t even notice. With a hurt look on her face, Gilda asked why Bruce had to run around dressed in that costume and why he had to involve Harvey. If it weren’t for Bruce, there would be no Joker, and Harvey would be fine. Bruce admitted that Gilda was right, he was responsible for Jack Napier just as Napier was responsible for him. Gilda asked what Bruce meant by that and Gilda’s horror soon increased when Bruce revealed to her that Jack Napier was the one who killed his parents. Batman turned Jack Napier into the Joker by dropping him into that vat of nuclear waste, but Jack Napier turned Bruce Wayne into Batman by murdering his parents in front of him. So Gilda decided that perhaps Batman wasn’t to blame for all her problems after all since this all started with Jack Napier. However, Gilda was still furious with Bruce for involving Harvey in his vigilantism. Bruce urged Gilda to leave Gotham with her son while Harvey was still distracted with him. Bruce wanted Gilda and her son baby Dexter to move to London, England, where they would stay at the home that Alfred grew up in. London, England was where Alfred met Bruce’s parents for the first time. Bruce reassured Gilda that he had already spoken to his business manager Lucius Fox at Wayne Motors and that Gilda would have access to all of his accounts. However, Gilda didn’t want all of this, she didn’t want Bruce’s money, she wanted Harvey. Gilda Gold loves Harvey Dent more than anything in the world. Gilda wanted to fight for Harvey, but Bruce warned Gilda that there was no time to be a martyr since her son baby Dexter will be an orphan if his mother died. Getting annoyed, Gilda hoped that her son didn't end up an orphan like Bruce because both she and Bruce saw how that turned out. Bruce absorbed the blow while Gilda began to regret what she said and Bruce admitted that he understood why Gilda wanted to be with Harvey. Bursting into tears, Gilda pleaded for Bruce to let her talk to Harvey, because Bruce was Batman, and Bruce can make it happen. Bruce had the plan to help Harvey but he wanted Gilda and her son to go in case his plan went awry. Gilda was still frustrated with Bruce for involving Harvey, but she was not a monster. Gilda was concerned that Harvey might kill Bruce just like how he killed Charlie. However, Bruce wasn’t concerned about losing his life because he was trading his life, for Gilda, her son, and for Gotham, which touched Gilda deeply. Gilda then burst into tears at this, began to soften, and smiled, now Bruce was sounding like a martyr.
Two-Face later called Alfred and requested to meet with Bruce. Alfred told Two-Face that Bruce was out but will be back shortly, so Two-Face told Alfred that he will be at Wayne Manor by tonight since he had a proposition for Bruce and then hung up on Alfred. Selina was growing fond of Alfred, whom she believed to be a gentleman’s gentleman with a warm grandfatherly smile. Alfred hoped that Bruce and Selina would have a life together someday, just as how Bruce’s parents, the late Thomas and Martha Wayne, whom Alfred referred to as his dear friends, would have wanted it. Selina was still going to stay for Bruce to deal with Harvey. The thought of Bruce in danger made Selina ill. Selina couldn’t live with herself if anything happened to Bruce. Selina had become overprotective of Bruce after watching Max Shreck shoot him with a firearm. Selina admitted that staying with Bruce at Wayne Manor would be like a fairy tale come true, but after she helped Bruce deal with Harvey, then she would still have to make Carmine Falcone get what he deserved for what he did. In Gilda’s penthouse, Bruce received a phone call from Alfred to let him know about Harvey. Gilda asked if it was about Harvey. Bruce said that it was. Bruce will send Alfred over to Gilda’s penthouse to help her pack and then take her to a private airfield where a plane arranged by Lucius will take them to England. Bruce urged Gilda to consider his offer, which Gilda agreed to sadly before Bruce left. At the police plaza, Drake was being interrogated by Bullock and several other detectives who were resentful toward Drake thinking that he killed Charlie, who was their friend. Gordon then stopped the interrogation when he found out that Two-Face was the one who witnessed Drake kill Charlie. Now realizing that Drake was being set up by Two-Face, Bullock and the other detectives began apologizing to Drake. As much as Bullock hated to admit to it, if the law couldn't get to Two-Face, then hopefully Batman can. Tonight was going to be the night. Bruce believed that somewhere beneath the monster was his old friend and he was going to do whatever it took to get him back.
When Two-Face arrived at Wayne Manor, Bruce brought him into the Batcave where Bruce pretended to be bound to a wheelchair as a result of the explosion that Two-Face caused. Bruce recalled that back when Two-Face was Harvey Dent, he always spoke about how his magic coin was never wrong and that it always got the right result. Bruce asked to look at the coin and Two-Face allowed it since Bruce now worked for him as a bodyguard, enforcer, hitman, and in light housekeeping. Two-Face presented the photo he took in the underground railway to blackmail Bruce and offered to get Drake released. Bruce refused to give in to blackmail and instead proposed an alternative just when Two-Face pointed a gun at him and was about to shoot. Bruce proposed to arrange for doctors from Switzerland to heal Harvey’s injuries and get him reunited with Gilda. Afterward, Bruce can use his influence as a Wayne to restore Harvey to his position, working with him to take down the criminals of Gotham. Two-Face then began to get emotional when Bruce mentioned Gilda, but reluctantly refused since he had gone too far and there was no turning back. Bruce then handed the coin back to Two-Face and insisted that Two-Face let the coin decide. When Two-Face flipped his coin, Catwoman immediately appeared out of nowhere and attacked Two-Face, getting him to the ground. Two-Face angrily stood up and angrily pointed his revolver at Bruce, believing that this was a setup. However, Catwoman darkly told Two-Face there would be no more chances and threw the coin into the chasm. Two-Face screamed in horror and leaped over to the chasm, catching the coin with one hand and using the other hand to grab the edge at the last possible second. Bruce then tried to save Two-Face by leaping out of the wheelchair and grabbing his hand. Bruce told Two-Face to pull himself back up, but Two-Face refused because he’ll drop the coin. Bruce insisted that Two-Face drop his coin and save himself. Two-Face then became conflicted about what to do. Bruce then revealed to Two-Face that he switched coins when they were bantering. It was a trick coin Bruce gave Two-Face that will always land on heads. However, Two-Face refused to believe Bruce and was still conflicted about what to do.
Two-Face was then startled when Alfred arrived at the Batcave with Gilda and baby Dexter in her arms, which Two-Face noticed. Gilda heard everything Two-Face told Bruce and told Two-Face through eye contact that he didn’t need the coin, but she needed him and their son needed him. Two-Face then burst into tears upon looking at his son for the first time in his life. Two-Face didn’t know that Gilda was pregnant with his child. Gilda then tearfully explained to Two-Face that their son’s name was Dexter, a name that Harvey wanted to name their child if it was a boy. The good side of Two-Face began to regret not being there when Gilda was giving birth, but the evil side looked at the baby in disgust. Gilda then told Two-Face that it was his decision. So now Two-Face had a decision to make: life or death, the coin or his family. Gilda begged for Harvey Dent to return to her and that she loves him. Suddenly, Two-Face’s eyes constricted, something had happened inside him because of what Gilda did. Two-Face dropped the coin and took Gilda’s hand when she extended it over to him. Bruce and Gilda then pulled Two-Face up as his coin fell into the chasm. Two-Face collapsed and was back to being plain old Harvey Dent again since he no longer sensed his other personality in him. Becoming nervous, Dent asked if he was free and Gilda reassured him that he was as she embraced him. Dent turned to Bruce and asked who he was. Bruce smiled and told Harvey that he was his friend. Harvey then returned to Gilda’s embrace while Bruce left the scene to speak with Catwoman.
Bruce was outraged by what Catwoman had done since she almost got his friend killed. After all, Bruce wasn’t a murderer. Catwoman became furious with this and began to recall what occurred last christmas. Last Christmas, Bruce was investigating Max Shreck’s alliance with Penguin and the Red Triangle Gang to attack Gotham so that Shreck would name Penguin as mayor. Although Shreck did sponsor Penguin in his campaign for mayor, Penguin could’ve used the money Shreck had given him for his criminal activities without Shreck’s knowledge. Believing that Shreck would never be prosecuted, Catwoman opted to put him six feet under. Bruce then tried to talk Catwoman out of it only to fail. Catwoman then began to call Bruce out for his hypocrisy because while Bruce showed sadistic pleasure in killing street thugs as Batman, he still tried to prevent corrupt members of Gotham’s elite from being murdered. Catwoman also recalled that Bruce tried to kill Jack Napier by letting Napier fall 500 stories down from the Gotham Cathedral. Bruce argued that he thought the pain would go away once he killed Napier, however, Bruce was wrong since he continued to have bad memories of Napier killing his parents. Killing changed nothing for him and only made the pain worse. However, Catwoman pointed out that Bruce still killed those street thugs out of sadistic pleasure while suffering from those memories of Napier, so Bruce was still a hypocrite. Catwoman angrily yelled that Bruce was just a poor little rich boy and if he ever earned a living and fed a family like everyone else then Batman wouldn't exist. Selina had been after Carmine Falcone for months but like a stupid corndog, she thought saving Bruce’s life was more important. Catwoman wished she could’ve “hooked up with Harvey”. Bruce was then startled when he learned that he accidentally gave Two-Face back his actual coin while they were bantering instead of the trick coin. That explained why Two-Face didn’t believe him earlier. Selina then left the Batcave taking back her cat that she gave Bruce last Christmas. Gilda was still upset with Selina for almost killing Harvey, but was too relieved to have Harvey back to be concerned. Bruce was upset with Alfred for letting Gilda and Selina into the Batcave just like what he did with Vicki Vale. Bruce then considered what Alfred did to be a "bad habit" as Alfred held baby Dexter in his arms.
The next afternoon at Arkham Asylum, Gilda was now visiting Harvey, who was admitted by Bullock to be a patient and Harvey was now in a straitjacket. Gilda and Harvey sat across from each other while Alfred kept their infant son entertained and two guards were present to ensure there were no problems. Harvey agreed that it was a good idea for Gilda and their son to leave Gotham for a while because of Carmine Falcone. Gilda decided that she was going to relocate to Gotham’s sister city Metropolis so that she can be closer to Harvey. Gilda was startled to learn that Harvey was unable to recall his actions as Two-Face. All Harvey remembered was Napier trying to blow him up and then after that, nothing. Harvey fearfully asked if he tried to kill Gilda, but Gilda gently reassured Harvey that he didn’t try to kill her. Harvey then asked about Charlie. Gilda revealed that someone anonymously handed over a revolver to Bullock, a weapon that was used to kill Charlie, Maitland, and Reeves, which had Harvey’s fingerprints on it. Realizing that he killed Charlie, Harvey Dent began to burst into tears, showing regret for what he did. Gilda then gently embraced Harvey as Harvey began to mourn Charlie’s death.
Outside Arkham Asylum, Bruce was standing outside, staring at a blank wall. Bruce recalled how he, Gilda, and Harvey once attended a lecture being held by Professor Carter Nichols on the existence of the multiverse back when they were in college together. Carter Nichols explained that there were other earths on what might have been and Bruce began to think about what might have been. On another earth, when the Joker died rather than surviving his fall from the Gotham Cathedral, Batman allied with District Attorney Harvey Dent and police Commissioner James Gordon. The three agree to work together to take down the mob owned by Carmine Falcone and the dirty politicians on Falcone’s payroll. The three vowed to bend the law but never to break it. When Carmine Falcone met with the Joker Gang in an old rundown building to discuss plans for their criminal activities, the police led by Dent and Gordon arrived with Batman accompanying them. Batman engaged in an epic gun battle with the Joker Gang while Falcone tried to escape. Falcone then noticed Dent in the building supervising several officers. Once the officers left, Falcone tried to kill Dent by causing an explosion. Dent managed to make it out alive but was caught in the explosion and set on fire. Batman and Gordon then pat Dent down with only half of Dent’s face and body being burned in the explosion. Falcone escaped while Dent survived. Rather than going berserk, Dent agreed to undergo plastic surgery in Switzerland as arranged by Bruce. Then while Dent is in therapy because of the trauma he endured at the hands of Falcone, Batman and Commissioner Gordon were working together to round up the bad guys. After a few months in therapy, Harvey Dent then returned home as a hero, a husband to Gilda, and a father to baby Dexter. By then, Bruce would be retired as Batman and everything he had would be at Dent and Gordon’s disposal. Bruce, Dent, and Gordon would then clean up Gotham City the right way…..
Bruce then stopped his thought process when Gilda approached him. Gilda reported that Harvey didn’t remember Bruce being Batman. Gilda still had to move to Metropolis since Harvey angered Falcone. Bruce was at least pleased that Harvey still had Gilda and Bruce revealed he was paying for all of Harvey’s treatments. Bruce was also glad to know he didn’t have to protect Gotham alone now that he had Drake. Gilda asked how Drake was and Bruce revealed that Bullock had the charges dropped against Drake for murdering Charlie after finding Harvey’s fingerprints on the murder weapon. Despite this, Gilda hoped that someday she and Harvey would someday have a normal life together. After all, there was always hope. Gilda refused to tell Bruce how to live his personal life but insisted that he try not to work too late. Bruce then apologized to Gilda because he told Harvey he was Batman and not her. Bruce wished he could’ve told Gilda who he was and what he was doing a long time ago. Gilda, however, felt that she should be the one apologizing to Bruce. All this time when Gilda held Batman accountable for what happened to Harvey, it was so that she would avoid blaming the real person responsible for Harvey's suffering: herself. Gilda felt that if she had told Harvey about the baby sooner, then Harvey would've taken time off from the D.A's office to be there for her and Dexter. However, Bruce convinced Gilda that it was the Joker's fault since he was the one who blew Harvey up. Still feeling the weight of the world on his shoulders, Bruce was about to apologize since he felt he never should've involved Harvey in the first place or dropped Napier into that chemical vat, but Gilda shushed Bruce by putting her finger to his lips. Gilda then proceeded to kiss Bruce on the cheek to thank him for everything he had done for her and told Bruce that she was wrong about Batman. Gilda then left to be taken by Alfred for her new life in Metropolis. Bruce sighed as Gilda left since he was thinking about what Selina said about starting a family. Bruce was startled to find Selina sitting on a tree, looking down at him. Selina then landed on her feet and handed Bruce a news report written by Alexander Knox. In the news report, Batman was now cleared of murdering the Ice Princess since the mysterious Catwoman confessed her involvement in the incident. Selina wanted to make her and Bruce’s nightlife more interesting. Bruce became concerned because now Bullock was going to get the entire police force after her, but Catwoman then vanished without a trace.
Later, Bruce went to meet with Drake, who was now relieved that people now know he didn’t kill Charlie. Drake wasn't going back to school for a while since he is still frustrated at everyone for believing that he killed Charlie when he didn't. Bruce still insisted that Drake wear gloves when going out as Robin since Bullock now had Drake’s fingerprints. Drake was disappointed when he thought Bruce would hand him over a rusted bicycle, but it was a hologram for what the rusted bicycle really was: the Batcycle. Bruce asked if there was anything else Drake wanted and Drake began to speak to Bruce about baby Nyesha. Bruce felt guilty for what happened at Burnside with Maitland and so he had Lucius set up a trust fund for baby Nyesha. By the time baby Nyesha turned eighteen, she would have access to twenty million dollars for college, travel, and whatever she wanted. Lucius reassured Bruce that baby Nyesha would be set for life. However, Drake insisted that Bruce drop the trust fund because people will only want to adopt Nyesha just for the money. Drake then told Bruce about his sister who lived upstate with a husband that had a good job. Because they couldn’t have children, they decided to adopt two instead. Drake advised Bruce to let his sister adopt baby Nyesha so she would grow up loved, wanted, and with a normal life. Bruce could still give baby Nyesha the money when she turned eighteen or leave it to her in his will. If Bruce helped, Drake will never tell anyone why Bruce really did it. Realizing that Drake was right, Bruce agreed to have Gilda pull some strings with the adoption agency. Drake then left Wayne Manor as Robin in his new Batcycle.
In the evening, Gordon returned to his house to spend time with his teenage granddaughter Barbara, whom he started raising. Barbara missed Eileen and Gordon did too. After getting Barbara to bed, Gordon received a briefcase from Catwoman and a letter from her by mail. In the letter, Catwoman first offered her condolences to Gordon for Charlie’s death. Second, Catwoman revealed that the suitcase contained the files that belonged to Carl Grissom, however, Grissom’s files might be inadmissible in court since they might have been tainted. If so, Catwoman offered Gordon access to private communications to find the evidence he needed to convict Carmine Falcone's associates. Catwoman warned Gordon that if he accepted her deal, Gordon would make powerful enemies. If Gordon accepted the deal, Catwoman would gladly help Gordon as a friend, his guide, and if she were to be bold, his oracle. If Catwoman and Gordon began working together, then they could make Gotham a very different place. Gordon wasn’t sure what to think of all this since Catwoman was involved in the Ice Princess’ murder which caused all that tension between Batman and Maitland. To be fair though, Maitland was crooked before the tension with Batman as Maitland was on Grissom’s payroll like Maitland’s former lieutenant Eckhardt. Gordon then discovered the photo that Two-Face took of Batman being unmasked as Bruce Wayne, a revelation which spooked Gordon. Gordon met Bruce Wayne the night Bruce’s parents died too and did the best he could to comfort. Gordon correctly deduced that night was what drove Bruce to become Batman. Gordon felt guilty for all the times Bullock and Batman argued since Bullock secretly had a soft spot for Bruce as Bullock helped Gordon try to comfort Bruce that dreadful night Bruce’s parents died. Despite his gruff behavior, Bullock had a softer side that he rarely showed. Bullock grew up with wealthy children who thought the law didn’t apply to them and who only thought of themselves. Gordon and Bullock both thought Bruce was trying to help improve Gotham’s political machine by using his money to get corrupted public officials to be replaced by clean ones. Gordon and Bullock never expected Bruce to take it that far. Gordon took out his lighter and burned the picture of Bruce Wayne being Batman, the only evidence he had that would bring Bruce down. Gordon also decided to maintain plausible deniability in the knowledge of Bruce Wayne being Batman for Bruce to be more effective in his operations. So Gordon wasn’t going to tell Batman that he knew his secret and not dive deep into it.
The next night, Gordon showed Bullock the letter given to him by Catwoman. Bullock had considered Batman to be a menace and a freak, but only tolerated him out of respect for Gordon. Bullock had also been never so frustrated with the system in his life because of the Governor. Two-Face shot Bullock in the chest and left him for dead. The Joker Gang attacked the police plaza, endangered civilians, and assassinated a lot of officers with a bright future ahead of them all for their amusement. But what did the Governor do to deserve Bullock’s hate? The Governor pardoned them! There was nothing that Bullock could do about it since governors, mayors, presidents, and prime ministers were allowed to issue pardons, it wasn’t illegal. Bullock never thought he would complain about the system. Bullock told Gordon to reject Catwoman’s proposal as Catwoman was still involved in the Ice Princess’ demise. Gordon suggested that he and Bullock could work with Batman instead of Catwoman to challenge Gotham’s corrupt elite. So now Bullock had a decision to make: if he were to be opposed to Batman, Gotham’s corrupt elite would continue cheating the system all while Bullock was enforcing the rules by targeting Batman. If Bullock were to start tolerating vigilantes such as Batman, he would be playing against the rules. So now Bullock was conflicted.
While Bullock was deciding what to do, Robin was out on patrol using the Batcycle that Batman gave him. So far, Robin had to deal with a couple of shoplifters and a drunk driver. There was so much Robin could do on a bike. Robin then spotted Catwoman jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Robin at first wanted to follow Catwoman to find out what she was up to but then decided that it was none of her business and to leave her be. Catwoman broke into Carmine Falcone’s penthouse where Carmine Falcone was sleeping in his bedroom while snoring out loud. Carmine then began to scream in his sleep as Catwoman began using her claws to gut that pig to death in revenge for neglecting her.
Weeks later, Bruce was in his study at Wayne Manor thinking back to what might have been in the world he was thinking about at Arkham: Bruce would eventually marry Vicki Vale and have children with her, a son named Bruce Jr., a daughter named Tivali, and they would adopt baby Nyesha. Vicki would be referred to as “Mrs. Wayne”. Harvey Dent would marry Gilda Gold, causing Gilda to be referred to as “Mrs. Dent”. The Waynes and the Dents would be on “Christmas Card” terms where they would have dinner together at Wayne Manor. Dexter would play with Tivali, baby Nyesha, and Bruce Jr. in the backyard while the Waynes and the Dents would banter. To make matters even better, Bruce’s parents would still be alive and would also join them for dinner....
Bruce was then awakened by the Bat-Signal that Gordon and Bullock would light. Bullock had finally made his decision: James Gordon was always a fair-minded and honorable individual unlike Captain Maitland, who was corrupt and suspected to be on the mob’s payroll. Gordon’s traits were what got him promoted to commissioner instead of Maitland. So perhaps if James Gordon was fine with Batman, then perhaps Bullock should be too. As Bruce watched the Bat Signal in the night sky, he began contemplating whether he should try to have a normal life. Bruce then withdrew Harvey Dent’s magic coin, which he found down in the rocks of the cave, to decide whether Batman should continue or discontinue……
Cast[]
- Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne / Batman
- Marlon Wayans as Drake Winston / Robin
- Jack Nicholson as Jack Napier / the Joker
- Michelle Pfeiffer as Selina Kyle / Catwoman
- Billy Dee Williams as Harvey Dent / Two-Face
- Jon Polito as Carmine 'The Roman' Falcone
- Frank Vincent as Salvatore Maroni
- William Smith as Captain John Maitland
- Pat Hingle as Commissioner James Gordon
- Nicole Kidman as Gilda Gold
- Pat Corley as Lieutenant Eddie Bullock
- Joe Morton as Charlie
- Paul Freeman as Mayor Theodore Cobblepot
- Michael Gough as Alfred Pennyworth
- Kim Basinger as Vicki Vale
- Robert Whul as Alexander Knox
- Keri Russell as Barbara Gordon
- Michael Murphy as Mayor Roscoe Jenkins
The cast of Batman Continues includes Andrew Bryniarski as Max Shreck's son, Charles "Chip" Schreck and George Lane Cooper as Lawrence the Boombox Goon.
Trailer[]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=SOWO53kgSq4
Sources[]
- Script, Daily. “Batman Returns.” Batman Returns Script by Daniel Waters, http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/batman-returns_early.html.
- Script, Daily. “Batman 2 .” Batman 2 Script by Sam Hamm, http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/batman-returns_unproduced.html.
- Script, Daily. “Batman.” Batman Script by Sam Hamm, http://www.dailyscript.com/scripts/batman_early.html.
- Hamm, Sam. Batman'89. DC Comics.
- Achannelthatsawesome, director. What If Tim Burton Directed Batman Forever? YouTube, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sA1WU-9UVxw. Accessed 30 Aug. 2022.
Gallery[]
.jpg "Batman II (Tim Burton Films).jpg (713 KB)")
Notes[]
- In an original draft for Batman Returns, brilliant writer Sam Hamm wanted Penguin and Catwoman to join forces to frame Batman for the murders of Gotham’s wealthiest citizens (the Barretts, the Provosts, the Tiptrees, and the Shaws) to try to locate a secret treasure. Some aspects of the original script were applied to Batman Continues. In Sam Hamm’s Batman Returns, Walter Barrett was an industrialist who moonlighted as a drug lord and a polluter. The secret treasure came when Barrett, Provost, Tiptree, Shaw, and Bruce Wayne’s ancestors orchestrated a robbery on the Gotham treasury to put Gotham into bankruptcy. Barrett, Provost, Tiptree, Shaw, and Bruce Wayne’s ancestors agreed to bail Gotham out of bankruptcy in exchange for all the city contracts, making them wealthier than any other family. To hide the treasure stolen from the Gotham treasury, the five families hid it in the Batcave while using five raven statues that would reveal its location if the statues were used together. In Batman Continues, it was Carl Grissom’s grandfather who robbed the city treasury instead in order to manipulate the city into granting him all of their contracts, making the Grissoms wealthier than any other family. In Batman Continues, Carl Grissom was integrated with elements of Walter Barrett which explained why Grissom always thought he was untouchable by the law.
- Robin was always meant by Warner Bros to appear in many of Tim Burton’s Batman movies. However, Tim Burton disliked the character which was why Robin was always scrapped. Robin was set to be Richard Grayson in Tom Mankiewicz’s script where he would’ve lost his parents at the hands of the Joker. Richard would be adopted by Bruce Wayne and would’ve seen Bruce’s love interest Silver St. Cloud be a mother figure to him. Richard would’ve become Robin to help Batman combat Rupert Thorne and the Joker. Sam Hamm originally wanted the Joker to kill Richard’s parents, who were gymnasts known as the Flying Graysons, while Batman was in pursuit of him. Batman would’ve saved Richard from the Joker while Richard was trying to avenge his parents and then take Richard to Wayne Manor. Richard would’ve become Robin to help Batman deal with the Joker. In the plans that Sam Hamm originally had for Batman Returns, Richard Grayson would’ve been a homeless teenage vigilante helping Batman deal with Penguin and Catwoman, who were trying to uncover the treasure. In the original drafts that the brilliant Daniel Waters had written for Batman Returns, Robin would’ve been an African-American teenage garage mechanic who helped repair the Batmobile right after Penguin damaged it. Robin would’ve helped Batman in his final battle against Penguin. Marlon Wayans was set to appear as Robin in Batman Returns but never got the chance to appear due to issues with budgeting.
- In Batman Continues, this version of Robin has several elements from his planned appearances in Batman Returns such as being an independent vigilante and a mechanic. Sam Hamm originally wanted this version of Robin to be called “Richard Drake”, as in Richard Grayson and Tim Drake, but eventually decided to refer to Robin as “Drake Winston”.
- The characters Councilwoman Mary Richardson, Councilman Donald Minors, Antonio Velasco, and Dennis Barvel were characters from a database that Batman would access in the Batman Returns DOS game. Governor Gilroy is a character from the original draft of the 1989 Batman movie.
- The Joker Gang was inspired by the Jokerz from Batman Beyond, where they were criminals inspired by Joker.
- In the original draft for Batman Returns, Sam Hamm wanted Vicki Vale to be engaged to Bruce. In the original draft of the 1989 Batman movie, Joker would’ve killed Vicki causing Batman to kill Joker in rage. In Batman Continues, Joker is ultimately responsible for the death of Vicki Vale leaving Batman to suffer in grief and hatred for the Joker even further.
- The character Captain John Maitland was a reference to Tim Burton’s movie Beetlejuice and the character Dr. Boggs was a reference to Tim Burton’s movie Edward Scissorhands. I originally intended for Lieutenant Eddie Bullock to be the opportunistic and ruthless GCPD officer hunting Batman, but I decided it would destroy Bullock's character since Bullock is an ally to Batman and Commissioner Gordon in the comics, so I decided to replace Lt. Bullock’s role with Captain Maitland’s.
- Originally for Batman Returns, Sam Hamm wanted Billy Dee Williams’ Harvey Dent to become the supervillain Two-Face. However, Warner Bros wanted Penguin to be the main villain since Penguin was a prominent opponent for Batman right after the Joker. Originally for Batman Returns, Daniel Waters wanted Billy Dee Williams’ Harvey Dent to be the corrupt official supporting Penguin’s candidacy for mayor. However, Harvey Dent’s role was replaced by Max Shreck, the corrupt owner of a department store. Originally for Batman Returns, Harvey Dent was set to make a small appearance in the film.
- It is revealed that Ilya Salkind's Superman film series exists in the same universe as Tim Burton's Batman film series with Superman being the first costumed vigilante active before Batman.
- Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent’s fascination with the multiverse is a reference to the Arrowverse where the multiverse is where there are different earths that vibrate at different frequencies so they can avoid colliding with one another. There is a daughter universe theory in quantum mechanics that says “for every decision you make, a universe exists where you don’t”. This is what occurred when Bruce Wayne and Harvey Dent were both thinking of what might have been.