The unmade sequel to Batman & Robin almost introduced Harley Quinn to the world of DC live-action movies years before she actually debuted in this capacity. Batman & Robin has a complicated place in the annals of Batman movie history, being one of the most easily recognizable – and most consistently disliked – releases in the Dark Knight’s entire film catalog. However, this only serves to make the real life story of the installment and its effect on DC’s movie landscape all the more interesting.
This is particularly true when it comes to the matter of the movie that was initially intended to come after Batman & Robin in the Batman movie lineup, as it wasn’t at first intended to be the last release of the series. In fact, the unmade fifth film was seemingly set to be a grand tying together of this film roster, bringing back some surprising villains, and introducing new ones all the while. Plans for the story even brought Harley Quinn into the fray to face off against a live-action Batman, which could’ve resulted in some key changes for the character and for DC by and large.
Batman Unchained Could’ve Been Harley Quinn’s Live-Action Movie Debut Years Before It Happened
Harley Quinn’s Movie History Was Almost Very Different
While Harley Quinn first came to the small screen in 1992 with her first ever appearance in Batman: The Animated Series – and made a comic debut not long after this – it was a much longer wait before her arrival on the big screen. Suicide Squad brought the first live-action film version of Quinn to life, but the character almost appeared in a cinematic release long before that with Batman Unchained, which was projected for a 1999 release – notably only a few years after audiences first met DC’s other major clown.
Mark Protosevich’s script for the Batman Unchained movie reportedly had the DC hero facing off against both Scarecrow and Harley Quinn in the events of the movie, allowing the series to explore new territory while still giving it useful ties back to the Joker and the series’ history for when and if they could be useful. However, the movie never ended up coming to fruition, resulting in a long stint wherein Harley Quinn remained only in comics, television, and animated movies until 17 years later with the 2016 Suicide Squad.
As the current defining live-action movie version of Harley Quinn, Margot Robbie has provided a solid series of performances as the character between Suicide Squad, Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn), and The Suicide Squad. However, it’s notable that – until Joker: Foile Á Deux introduced Lady Gaga’s iteration of Quinn to the world in 2024 – she was also the only live-action film version of Harley Quinn to have graced screens. As such, the mysteries regarding what Batman Unchained‘s Quinn would’ve brought to the stage are especially pertinent.
Introducing Harley Quinn Into The Earlier Batman Movie Series Would’ve Had Fascinating Results
Batman Unchained Had A Unique Iteration Of The DC Character
Harley Quinn’s evolution in-universe and in the real world has been an interesting process. First introduced as the adoring and blindsided by love sidekick to the Joker – a role played up for comic effect – in Batman: The Animated Series, stories quickly began to explore the trials and tribulations of being romantically entangled with a ruthless supervillain, with the toxic nature of the pair’s relationship a core part of Harley’s story, eventually culminating in the duo splitting up in order to give Quinn her own storylines.
Interestingly, Batman Unchained would’ve reportedly made Harley Quinn the Joker’s daughter, drastically changing the dynamic she would have had with the then-deceased Joker and making her place in the movie landscape all the more interesting. Combine this with a prospective casting of Courtney Love as Harley Quinn and the Joker being planned to return in the movie – albeit as a figment of Batman’s imagination brought back by the events of the film – and it’s clear Quinn’s story would’ve been like no other version told yet, making the missed chance all the more noteworthy.
It’s also worth noting that Quinn’s debut being in Suicide Squad was a mixed result, as while Robbie’s performance received praise, the movie itself did not fare as well. As such, looking at how Batman Unchained might have altered the character’s live-action debut is also interesting in this sense, although the movie never coming to fruition leaves this mostly up to the imagination.
Why Batman Unchained Didn’t End Up Being Made
Batman Unchained Was In A Tricky Position For More Than One Reason
Ultimately, Batman Unchained‘s place as Batman & Robin‘s sequel was seemingly what led to its downfall. While work had begun on Unchained‘s script before Batman & Robin‘s release, the reception to the movie – which remains consistently negative to this day, based on its 12% critic score and 16% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes – meant it was hard to imagine a follow-up release paying off. This was matched with lower box office results compared to every other Batman movie release in the series before it – despite some promising opening weekend results for Batman & Robin – reinforcing its failures.
This said, Batman Unchained may not have been made even if Batman & Robin had been a more critically and commercially successful movie, as the big swings the story took may have been too much to justify to executives – though Batman & Robin itself no doubt didn’t help. In a report from The Hollywood Reporter, writer Mark Protosevich details giving the script’s first draft to director Joel Schumacher and a Warner Bros. executive, stating Shumacher described it as, “the most expensive movie ever made.” According to Protosevich, what followed was radio silence from the studio, followed by the project’s termination.
However, the details of Batman Unchained and what could have been for its story will always make it a fascinating chapter of DC history, even if it’s one that never saw the light of day as a successor to Batman & Robin. With a new version of Harley Quinn likely set to emerge from the DC Universe and its upcoming slate of releases, it will be interesting to see how the future of DC’s movie releases reflects its past, and whether any fragments of what Unchained‘s Harley Quinn could have been like can be glimpsed in new iterations of the character.
Serving as the fourth and final installment in Warner Bros.’s original Batman movie series, Batman & Robin sees the caped crusader and his faithful sidekick come up against Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy, and Bane. The movie also marks the on-screen debut of Batgirl, who is played by American actress Alicia Silverstone.
- Director
- Joel Schumacher
- Release Date
- June 20, 1997
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