Stan Lee Really Wanted to Make a Cameo in Batman Returns

Long earlier Stan Lee cameos became an ever-present Easter ovum successful the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the legendary comics creator, who passed distant successful 2018 astatine property 95, had his oculus connected appearing successful an wholly antithetic franchise.

A caller Facebook station from erstwhile DC writer, editor, and enforcement Paul Levitz (via thePopVerse) reveals that astatine the 1989 premiere of Tim Burton’s Batman, Lee asked Batman co-creator Bob Kane if helium could marque a cameo successful its inevitable sequel.

Famously, of course, Lee popped up successful dozens of Marvel movies, adjacent anterior to the MCU’s authoritative kickoff; helium besides made galore appearances successful different media, particularly comics-adjacent films similar Mallrats. Even so, it whitethorn look unusual that Lee wanted to look successful a DC movie—though helium would yet lend his dependable to DC’s Teen Titans Go! To the Movies successful 2018, yet scratching that itch for the rare—but not unprecedented—comics-company crossover.

But you can’t assistance but wonder: what mightiness the King of Cameos person gotten up to successful Gotham City? Remember the sequel Lee was referring to would yet go Batman Returns, the unthinkable psychosexual fearfulness amusement introducing the satellite to some Michelle Pfieffer’s Catwoman and Danny DeVito’s Penguin. In hindsight, this seems similar a immense missed opportunity.

Looking backmost astatine the movie, Lee could person played a sewer-dwelling carny, slow-danced to Siouxsie and the Banshees, oregon adjacent had his chemoreceptor bitten disconnected by the Penguin (a country conscionable arsenic haunting to behold 3 decades later) in a metatextual jab astatine the competition. A lawsuit could adjacent beryllium made Lee would person made a amended Commissioner Gordon than Pat Hingle ever did. Lee’s larger-than-life nationalist persona would person made him a earthy acceptable for Gotham City— precisely the benignant of originative maniac who’d taker residence successful a metropolis mostly defined by its larger-than-life transgression element.

What are your thoughts connected Lee’s DC dreams? Speculate astir his Batman Returns missed imaginable successful the comments.

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