10 Things You Need To Know About Joel Schumacher's Batman Triumphant

4. They Wanted Jack Nicholson For A Joker Cameo

Besides some similar cast members and the occasional off-handed remark there isn't much sign of connective tissue between Tim Burton's first two Batman films and the two that Joel Schumacher directed after taking over. Despite the wildly differing tones and Michael Keaton swapped for Val Kilmer and George Clooney, though, they're meant to be set in the same universe. A universe where Gotham City goes from decidedly gothic and Art Deco to a gaudy, paint-splattered nightclub interior gone epic, but the same universe nonetheless. Batman Triumphant would've highlighted that further by confirming that the first Batman film €“ where the Dark Knight knocked off Jack Nicholson's Joker €“ happened to this guy who looks like him off of ER. Not only was there the plot line about Harley Quinn as his daughter, but the producers hoped to convince Nicholson back as The Joker, in a cameo role €“ not resurrected, but a hallucination of Batman's brought on by The Scarecrow's fear toxin.