Batman Returns Screenwriter Reveals There Were Two Very Different Plans for Catwoman Spinoff

Fresh off revealing he thought Tim Burton’s Batman sucked, Batman Returns screenwriter Daniel Waters divulged how a potential Catwoman spinoff could have gone in two very different directions.

Speaking during a screening of Batman Returns at the Egyptian Theater earlier this month, Waters revealed he and Burton had distinct personal visions for the spinoff that never came to fruition.

“He wanted to do an $18 million black and white movie, like the original Cat People, of Selina just lowkey living in a small town,” Waters said of Burton’s pitch. “And I wanted to make a Batman movie where the metaphor was about ‘Batman.’ So I had her move to a Los Angeles version of Gotham City, and it’s run by three asshole superheroes. It was ‘The Boys’ before ‘The Boys.’ But he got exhausted reading my script.”

Waters recently discussed how the original script for Batman Returns had multiple digs at the first film and the moneymaking power of the Bat Brand. The film was originally set to open with a Batman logo, only to pan out and reveal an in-universe store selling Batman merchandise, a joke at the expense of how big of a merchandising juggernaut the original Batman film was.

The idea, while commended by star Michael Keaton, was ultimately nixed. Waters said of the decision, “[Michael] Keaton said, ‘This is very clever. Cut it,’”