It is an open secret that Stephen Amell is a huge Batman fan. Recently, Bruce Wayne was named dropped in Arrow Stephen Amell was the one who got it approved and it was easier to get approval from Arrow makers than he thought. During an interview, Amell told media that the idea of bringing Batman’s alter ego in the show was his and he got it okayed from management at the DC big party. Here’s what he said.
“That was really funny; the original version of that script, which came out just before Comic-Con, was just Oliver referencing a famous name. I can’t even remember what the placeholder was; I think it might have been Justin Bieber. And I looked at it and thought to myself, ‘This is a cool opportunity.’ I talked to Greg Berlanti about it, and Greg said ‘I think it would behoove you to go straight to Geoff Johns and just simply ask. You’ll probably have better luck than I would.’ So I was at the DC Comics party at Comic Con — Geoff and I were supposed to meet and chat quickly. I couldn’t track him down, but the next thing I knew, I ended up in a four-way conversation with Peter Roth, Diane Nelson, and Kevin Tsujihara all at the same time. I was like, ‘Guys! I have an idea. I think it would be fun, I think it would open the door to a lot of possibilities.”
Here is the Name Drop Clip From Arrow:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QHvnHwiXQS8
Well he didn’t say that Bruce Wayne/Batman would show up, but it does open up the various possibilities for the future. Other than the name drop, there have been many instances and Easter Eggs in the Arrowverse that prove Batman’s existence. Here are all those references.
The Bludhaven Connection
Bludhaven is the city which is under the protection of Nightwing, the first Robin, and we all know that Nightwing aka Dick Grayson is the sidekick of Batman. Bludhaven was seen firstly back in the Season 1 of Arrow when the connected Universe did not even begin. So, it would be safe to consider that Dick Grayson and Bruce Wayne’s existence could be similar to Barry Allen in the Arrowverse.
The Wayne Name
In the first season of The Flash, we saw a future newspaper when Harrison Wells reveals himself as the Reverse Flash. The newspaper pointed out to the disappearance of the Flash in some kind of crisis. What fans might have missed was the name drop of ‘Wayne Tech’. This shows that Bruce Wayne does exist in this universe.
My Friend Bruce
In the second Season of The Flash, we saw him visit Earth 2 where he met his doppelganger of that Earth, i.e. Barry Allen. We saw that the Earth 2 Barry Allen’s telephone has very familiar names written on it which were ‘Dad’, ‘Mom & Dad’, ‘Eddie’, ‘Hal’, ‘Bruce’ and ‘Diana’. Clearly, Bruce Wayne exists on Earth 2, if not Earth 1.
Men of Steel & Dark Knights
In the first season of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow, we saw Captain Rip Hunter making a very quick and subtle reference that he has seen ‘men of steel die and dark knights fall’. Well, we have already seen Superman on ‘Supergirl’, and this was clearly a hint at both Superman and Batman.
The Vigilante
In the second season of Supergirl, we saw Superman come to team up with his cousin Supergirl, and during his adventures with her, he gives a Batman reference as he says that he “worked with a vigilante once; tons of gadgets, lots of demons”. Jimmy Olsen also becomes a Superhero, the ‘Guardian’ and he also gives a similar reference that he’s worried that people find the Guardian too scary and intimidating, like “Clark’s friend.”
Men with Masks
In the first season of Supergirl, we saw her take on a masked villain in an episode where she clearly gives a Gotham city and Batman reference. She says “I thought masked masks were a thing only in that other city.”
But, the Arrowverse has prospered and is loved a lot with all that has been going on till now, as the focus is not on the main steam DC characters, but on new characters with whom the audiences are not very familiar. And this is why the shows work so well without Batman in it. Here are the reasons why the Arrowverse does not need Batman to show up.
Shifts character focus
Batman is the biggest character DC has marketed and it he is the biggest gun WB has had over the years. Bringing in Batman would mean shifting a lot of focus around his storyline and the Arrowverse already has its plate full with so many other characters that have been explored on these shows and have been loved by all. Bringing him in would mean shifting the focus from the rest of the Arrowverse to him and the big fan base that this particular character has would surely increase the demand for more Batman than any other character.
Arrow is similar to Batman on the shows
In the comics, Green Arrow is a more joyful and fun loving character that keeps cracking jokes and has a charming personality. But, on the show, he has been showed as a more intense and brooding character who has suffered and evolved from the tragedies he has faced in his journey, pretty much like Bruce Wayne/Batman. So, having another character with the same persona would just not work for the shows as well as the audiences. Oliver has been more of Batman, and this trend should be continued.
The CW Universe
In the comics, the DC Universe would not work the way it does without Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. But, the CW’s DC Universe is not the DC Universe of the comics, though, and it has not been constructed around the big 3 icons. It has been more of Green Arrow, the Flash and Supergirl stepping into the shoes of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman respectively. These three are the TV Trinity which is what people have loved and responded pretty well to. So, bringing in a character like Batman would not work as he would not fit into this Universe.
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