How Happy Meals Killed Tim Burton's Batman

3. The Batman Returns Toy Problem

The story has always been that Warner Bros bowed to toy partners because they argued that there was no way of selling toys based on Burton's monstrosities. To be fair, they absolutely couldn't have done so to kids (though the Burton tie-in toys are delightful and the crowning part of lots of more grown-up collectors' collections) and Warner Bros were in the business of making fast bucks in the 1990s. They still are, but their approach is different.

That era was a time of instant return without too much thought about legacy. Sure, sequels were a nice idea, but looking back at the biggest movies of the early to mid 90s, they were geared towards short-term gains and ticket sales. That's why huge movies like Twister are mostly just remembered vaguely.

The studio needed their lucrative marketing partners for the first two movies. It was very much a huge part of their strategy as materials released ahead of 1989's original Batman reveal extensively. As the LATimes reported in 1992, the key partners were McDonald's, Diet Coke and Choice Hotels and a massive 120 product tie-ins were released including "talking toothbrushes, roller skates, and, naturally, T-shirts... boxer shorts, sunglasses and throw pillows... beach towels, beanbag chairs, weightlifting gloves and, yes, mugs."

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