George Clooney says his Batman 'destroyed' the franchise — so no, he didn't get a call for The Flash

Fans shouldn't get their expectations too high for George Clooney's Batman to appear in The Flash movie.

Despite the fact that the long-awaited upcoming DC superhero film centers on Ezra Miller's Scarlet Speedster, it will involve multiple Batmen. Ben Affleck's incarnation of the Dark Knight is set to appear in Andy Muschietti's 2022 superhero blockbuster, and Michael Keaton will also be there reprising the superhero role he originated in Tim Burton's 1980 Batman film.

Frazer Harrison/Getty George Clooney

But Clooney, who played the role in Joel Schumacher's much-lampooned 1997 film Batman & Robin, told Variety this week that he never even got the call.

"They didn't ask me," Clooney told Variety's Marc Malkin. "When you destroy a franchise the way I did, usually they look the other way when The Flash comes by."

Everett Collection George Clooney as the Dark Knight in 1997's 'Batman & Robin.'

In fact, Clooney would prefer that as many people as possible forget he ever even played Batman — including his family. His wife Amal Clooney told Malkin that he hasn't let her or their young children watch Batman & Robin.

"There are certain films I just go, 'I want my wife to have some respect for me,'" Clooney explained.

Clooney seems much more concerned with directing these days, anyway. Following up last year's The Midnight Sky for Netflix, Clooney's next directorial feature is The Tender Bar for Amazon. Based on journalist J.R. Moehringer's memoir of the same name, The Tender Bar stars Affleck, Tye Sheridan, and Lily Rabe. It will hit theaters in December before landing on Amazon Prime Video on Jan. 7, 2022.

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