Timothée Chalamet Becomes Batman Beyond In Fantastic Art - But There's A Problem
Despite dominating Saturday morning cartoons in the late '90s and early 2000s, "Batman Beyond" missed out on the explosion of the theatrical superhero, with Terry McGinnis seemingly locked away in Neo-Gotham. While some hope DC will capitalize on the success of films like "TMNT: Mutant Mayhem" or "Spider-Verse," giving "Batman Beyond" an animated movie, the studio has more or less left audiences imagining what could have been.
Fortunately, that's exactly what artist SPDRMNKYXXIII did, taking to Instagram to post fan art of Timothée Chalamet as the futuristic Batman. Although fans usually tie Chalamet's name to Robin, the image showcases what "Batman Beyond" could be on the big screen. Even Neo-Gotham comes to life behind Chalamet, accenting the costume with even more menacing red. However, as good as the art is, it doesn't take Terry McGinnis' heritage into account.
Chronologically wrapping up DC's legendary animated universe that began with "Batman: The Animated Series," "Batman Beyond" put a futuristic spin on the beloved Caped Crusader, passing the mantle to a teenager, with an elderly Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy) serving as his mentor. The show quickly gained a devoted following, and fans would love to see a big screen debut, but Chalamet as Terry McGinnis resurfaces a longstanding problem within Hollywood and erases the character's Asian heritage.
Let's not whitewash Batman Beyond
SPDRMNKYXXIII's fanart of Timothee Chalamet as "Batman Beyond" looks incredible. Let's get that out of the way. But it shines a light on Hollywood's nasty habit of whitewashing characters. While the animated "Batman Beyond" series never explicitly states Terry's ethnicity, given the stylistic choices for the series — particularly Neo-Gotham and McGinnis' straight black hair — many fans assumed the character was of Asian descent.
Previously, the only hint at his ethnicity was in "Justice League Unlimited," which revealed Terry was a genetic clone of Bruce Wayne despite being born to Warren and Mary McGinnis. However, "Batman: Beyond the White Knight" took it a step further, with author Sean Murphy revamping Terry's heritage, officially making the character half Asian and half Irish. In an Instagram post, Murphy wrote, "Because of the Japanese influence on Neo-Gotham's design, like a lot of other kids, I mistakenly assumed Terry was half Asian. So, in my world, I decided to follow through with that ethnicity."
If "Batman Beyond" were ever to make it to the big screen, fans would want DC to honor Terry's heritage, casting an Asian or half-Asian actor instead of someone like Chalamet. Although it doesn't seem likely the futuristic Batman will fly into theaters anytime soon, Warner Bros. has previously shown interest, working on an animated "Batman Beyond" to compete against Sony's "Spider-Verse." However, with James Gunn's commitment to Elseworlds projects in his new DCU, there's always the chance "Batman Beyond" could eventually jump to the big screen, hopefully bringing his Asian heritage with him.