It was 20 years ago last year Batman beyond completed its three-season run (including the direct-to-video film Return of the Joker), but it wouldn’t be the last we’d see Terry McGinnis in the DC Animated Universe. The Caped Crusader of Neo Gotham City appeared in a few episodes of Static Shock and Justice League Unlimited, and in 2014, Will Friedle reprized Terry in 2014 alongside Kevin Conroy’s Bruce Wayne for a short film made to celebrate Batman’s 75th anniversary. Almost a decade later, when might we hear Terry speak of Friedle again?
That’s exactly what I asked Will Friedle when I interviewed him about the role of Lex Luthor and Aquaman in the upcoming animated film Teen Titans go! & DC Super Hero Girls: Chaos in the Multiverse. While Friedle didn’t rule out a return to the world of Batman beyond one day he said he had heard such a prospect for a long time, only that nothing actually happened. In his words:
Who knows? We’ve heard that we’re going to do more episodes, we’ve heard that we’re going to do more movies, we’ve heard that since we quit in 2000. We’ve also heard 19 different times that they’re making live-action films. Who knows? I suspect we’ll see Terry McGinnis again in some form, but I haven’t heard anything about it until now. But I have to imagine that they will do live action sometime in the future [project] or they will do something animated. We just haven’t heard anything about it.
A live action Batman beyond The film was considered back in 2001, when the animated series was coming to an end and Warner Bros. Pictures was still trying to figure out what to do with the live-action Batman film series after the critical spanking of Batman & Robin. Fast forward to 2019, it was rumored that an animated Batman beyond Film was in the works but that was soon debunked. Will Friedle has gotten used to hearing all sorts of supposed news about the next issue of Batman beyond, which he then had to be managed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment publicist Gary Miereanu. The actor continued:
About twice a year the internet explodes like, “Hey, they’re doing more episodes of Batman Beyond,” and I’m going to call Gary [Miereanu] and go, ‘Is that true?’ And he’ll say, ‘No, no, we haven’t heard about that.’ And then another six months will go by and they’ll say, ‘Now do it! They do a live action [project], they’re casting for Terry McGinnis.” And I call Gary and he’s like, ‘No, no, these are all rumours.’ And that for 15 years. So I’m sure it will happen in some form in the future, I just don’t know when or how.
Batman beyond was one of Will Friedle’s first voice acting appearances, with the animated show starting in 1999, just a year earlier boy meets world, the sitcom in which Friedle played Eric Matthews, ended. Unlike its DCAU predecessors Batman: The Animated Series, The new Batman adventures and Superman: The Animated Series, Batman beyondThe premise of is not taken from the comics. Still, it quickly became a fan favorite (I consider it one of the best Batman iterations), and there have been several since 2010 Batman beyond Comic series published by DC Comics, although many of them were either tied to the main DC continuity or were set in a different universe rather than having a direct connection to the original TV show.
As of now, Will Friedle (who is also known for voicing Blue Beetle) hasn’t heard of any kind of Batman beyond revival, though he believes the property will eventually make an on-screen comeback. However, he also made it clear when he will really believe Batman beyond is back, whether on the big or small screen:
I’ll believe it when I’m either sitting in the theater watching a live-action version or standing behind the mic and actually saying it again. Then I really believe it.
It’s worth noting that in March 2021, Will Friedle and other cast members will be out Batman beyond appeared with voice director Andrea Romano for a tabletop reading and Q&A for the IGN Fan Fest, and there Romano suggested that fans should start a campaign to let Warner Bros. know they want it Batman beyond hand back. That’s not to say that taking such action would guarantee success, and with Batman: Caped Crusader Heading into HBO Max, the company could stock up on animated Batman series for the foreseeable future. Still, if/when Friedle is known to be repeating Terry McGinnis somewhereWe’ll let you know.
Until then, Batman beyond and all other DCAU shows can be streamed with an HBO Max subscription. If you’re interested in what Terry McGinnis is up to in the comics these days, log on to DC Universe Infinite or visit your local comic store.
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