A Longer Batman Forever Exists<\/p>\n
For years rumors have persisted about a \u201cdirector\u2019s cut\u201d of Batman Forever\u2014a longer version of the film that was Schumacher\u2019s original vision and apparently closer to the Gothic tone of the Burton films. Schumacher, who died in 2020, had mentioned that his first cut of the film ran two hours and 40 minutes, and speculation about the longer cut began to pick up anew after the director\u2019s death<\/a>. Screenwriter Akiva Goldsman also confirmed the existence of the longer edit<\/a>, suggesting that all the footage still existed if Warner Bros. wanted to restore it.<\/p>\n Some of the footage has in fact surfaced online, and Kevin Smith screened a personal copy of the longer cut\u2019s workprint for a private audience in 2023. Among the scenes that were omitted from the original release are more explorations of the psychology of Bruce Wayne with the help of love interest\/psychiatrist Chase Meridian (Nicole Kidman), a different opening in which we see how Two-Face escapes from prison, and a scene where Bruce hallucinates a confrontation with a giant bat<\/a> that actually made it into some commercials for the film. This version of the film is said to focus more on the duality of Bruce\/Batman vs. that of the villains, in particular Two-Face, and loses some of the one-liners and campier elements in favor of a more serious tone.<\/p>\n There has been fan interest in seeing the restored Batman Forever, but Warner Bros. has been silent on it<\/a>, especially as the company has gone through a number of upheavals over the past few years. But the interest is still out there, as evidenced by a screening that was supposed to be held last month by a Los Angeles video store until Warner Bros. put the kibosh on it<\/a>, not to mention that directors\u2019 cuts of Superman II, Daredevil, and Justice League all exist (although David Ayer\u2019s apparently preferred version of Suicide Squad remains in limbo).<\/p>\n It\u2019s About Honoring the Director and Star<\/p>\n It\u2019s time now, three full decades after the theatrical version\u2019s release, to release the Schumacher cut of Batman Forever. Estimates on how much a complete restoration would cost\u2014which would include editing, additional music and visual effects, color timing, and more\u2014are hard to pin down. Still, if Warner Bros. coughed up tens of millions for Zack Snyder to complete his version of\u00a0Justice League, surely it could spring for this.<\/p>\n But this isn\u2019t about restoring some fandom\u2019s idol; it\u2019s honoring the memory of Joel Schumacher, a talented filmmaker who made not just a lot of good movies but brought in plenty of cheddar for Warner Bros. over the years. His whole legacy has been stained by the fan animosity toward both Batman Forever and Batman & Robin. Restoring his original concept of the former might finally allow fans to see that he had something a bit different, and more credible, in mind than what the studio wanted.<\/p>\n