Tim Burton Slams Batman Forever Over Batman Returns Backlash

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“[Back then] they went the other way. That’s the funny thing about it,” Burton continued. “But then I was like, ‘Wait a minute. Okay. Hold on a second here. You complain about me, I’m too weird, I’m too dark, and then you put nipples on the costume? Go fuck yourself.’ Seriously. So yeah, I think that’s why I didn’t end up [doing a third film]…”

After “Batman Returns,” Burton vowed not to direct another “Batman” entry. Joel Schumacher took on the chore of the DC superhero, ultimately reigning at the box office in 1995 with his more pop-colored “Batman Forever.”

Burton defended his overall vision to Empire, saying, “I’m not just overly dark. That represents me in the sense that… that’s how I see things. It’s not meant as pure darkness. There’s a mixture. I feel really fondly about it because of the weird experiment that it felt like.”

“Batman Returns” alum Keaton is set to reprise his role as the titular Justice League member for Warner Bros.’ upcoming “The Flash” starring Ezra Miller. Keaton revealed he originally was supposed to continue playing Batman but left the franchise upon Burton’s exit and turned down “Batman Forever” over creative differences with Schumacher.

Like Burton, Keaton couldn’t wrap his head around Schumacher’s direction for the comic book adaptation. “I remember one of the things that I walked away going, ‘Oh boy, I can’t do this,'” Keaton said on the Backstage podcast. “[Joel Schumacher] asked me, ‘I don’t understand why everything has to be so dark and everything so sad,’ and I went, ‘Wait a minute, do you know how this guy got to be Batman? Have you read… I mean, it’s pretty simple.'”

Now, Burton helms Netflix’s “Addams Family” spin-off series “Wednesday” with Jenna Ortega, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Luis Guzmán leading an ensemble cast, plus the quintessential cameo from ’90s Wednesday actress Christina Ricci.

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