The Pre-Production Batsuit for Batman 3 with Michael Keaton has been revealed

Before Joel Schumacher and Val Kilmer Batman 3 was almost set to be another re-teaming with Michael Keaton and Tim Burton. But the powers that be at Warner Brothers opted for a less dark approach for the Dark Knight and eventually we got Batman Forever, and later regrettably Batman & Robin.

Earlier today the Brotherhood of the Bat message board revealed the above images of a pre-production suit that they claim came from from sculptor José Fernandez, who sculpted the batsuit for Batman Returns. After a little digging it was later discovered that these images are located on the page for Ironhead Studio’s Batman Returns portfolio.

While there is no doubt of the validity of these photos, many are quick to debunk them due to them being on the Batman Returns page, but its already begun to reveal rumors that these suits were made right around the same time that the pre-production of both Batman 3 and Superman Lives began, which is why the design style was so similar to what was see in the final suits in Batman Forver and the leaked concept art of Superman Lives.

In the end, this will always be one of those “if only” situations. While Batman Returns seemingly proved too dark for moviegoers of the early 90’s, the eventual steps away from that Warner Brothers took with Batman Forever and Batman & Robin will always leave fans jumping at finds like these.