10 Mind-Blowing Facts You Didn't Know About Batman Beyond
6. The Show Spawned A Spin-Off
In season 2 of Batman Beyond, Terry McGinnis learns that one of his teachers has been replaced with a shape-shifting assassin synthoid called Zeta (Typical school day). When Terry confronts Zeta, the robot explains that he was designed by the NSA to assassinate specific targets. When Zeta learned one of his targets had committed no crimes, he refused to kill ever again. Since he disobeyed his orders, Zeta must go on the run while the NSA hunt him down.
After only appearing in one episode, the character became so popular, the studio created a spin-off the following year called The Zeta Project. Instead of being a carbon copy of Batman Beyond, the show drew inspiration from the Harrison Ford film, The Fugitive, since the lead character is constantly on the run.
This spin-off was meant to be much darker in tone since the writers wanted Zeta to regularly struggle with his original murderous programming. Unfortunately, the producers dismissed this idea to make the show more kid-oriented.
Sadly, The Zeta Project was cancelled due to poor ratings, forcing the show to end on a cliffhanger. Although the first season is available on DVD, the second season is currently unavailable.