3. Batman Beyond
In the early 2000s, Warner Brothers struggled to find the right direction to take Batman. Joel Schumacher had practically killed the franchise with Batman & Robin, and the studio put several Bat-related projects into motion at once. Darren Aronofsky's Batman: Year One, a Batman Vs. Superman film, Joel Schumacher's Batman Triumphant, and a live action adaptation of Batman Beyond. Batman Beyond, the successful pseudo-sequel to Batman: The Animated Series, focused on a retired, elderly Bruce Wayne who trains a protege named Terry McGinnis to take over the mantle of the Dark Knight. The series featured futuristic, high-tech versions of classic characters we know and love from the Batman mythos. The show's co-creators, Paul Dini and Alan Burnett were hired for the film, which would be helmed by Remember the Titans director Boaz Yakin. Yakin called it a "futuristic cyberpunk with Batman," then quickly lost interest in making the film before WB decided to stray away from the futuristic setting in favor of a full-on contemporary reboot. It seems Batman Beyond has a slim chance of seeing the light of day now that DC/WB is concerned with crafting one cohesive cinematic universe, but with fans adamantly demanding a live action adaptation year by year, it will probably happen eventually.