10 Superhero Movies That Defined Other Superhero Movies

You would think that brilliance could only inspire further brilliance. Unfortunately that was not the case for 1992's classic Batman Returns, as the reaction from some of its audience inspired Warner Bros. to go in a, well, less brilliant direction.

Following the success of 1989's Batman, the studio granted director Tim Burton a lot more creative control for the sequel. As a result, Batman Returns was a bizarre, twisted masterpiece that looked like something out of Burton's dreams (or nightmares).

With eerie cityscapes, disturbing imagery and deeply troubled characters, Gotham City was a lot more Gothic than ever before and, although the film was indeed huge critical success, it faced a ton of parental backlash for being "too dark", due to its reliance on both graphic violence and sexual innuendos. This even resulted in McDonald's pulling their Happy Meal production for the film.

Sadly, Warner Bros. blamed the dark tone (and the subsequent backlash) for its underperformance at the box-office and insisted that the sequel take a more light-hearted approach. As a result, Burton was demoted to producer and Michael Keaton left the project altogether (and was eventually replaced by Val Kilmer).

Burton's nightmarish Gotham was wiped from existence and, in 1995, we got Batman Forever - a loud, neon-lit, in-your-face pantomime that couldn't have been further from its predecessors if it tried. Tonally, the film was also a far cry from Returns, substituting the adult tone for a campy light-hearted production that was nothing like either of Burton's visions.

Ironically, this "lighter" route would lead the franchise into a dark, dark place.