During a WB Animation panel held prior to the premiere of
Batman: The Killing Joke at San Diego Comic-Con, the studio revealed that their big animated movie release for next summer will be entitled
Batman and Harley Quinn. While many DC animated films serve to adapt famous comic arcs,
Batman and Harley Quinn will instead be a completely original tale centered on the titular characters, and written by Harley co-creator Timm. Details on the project beyond that weren’t announced, outside of the aforementioned summer 2017 release window.
With so much buzz surrounding
Harley’s portrayal in Suicide Squad, it’ll be interesting to see which rendition of the character Timm and WB choose to include in
Batman and Harley Quinn. Considering that Timm co-created her, one might imagine that he’d lean toward her original incarnation from
Batman: TAS, but there is something to be said for cross promotion among company properties.
It’ll also be interesting to see who ends up voicing the titular characters, and whether or not The Joker plays a large role in the proceedings. Since the Clown Prince of Crime isn’t included in the film’s title, one might imagine that if he does show up, he’ll be a supporting character at most. Still, it’s hard to imagine “Mr. J.” not appearing in some fashion, given how closely he tends to be linked to Harley.
As for voice actors, the obvious choice for Batman would seem to be stalwart Caped Crusader Kevin Conroy, and the obvious Joker would of course be Mark Hamill. A real coup, assuming Timm could somehow pull it off, would be to lure original Harley actress Arleen Sorkin back to the role she helped make so well known. Sorkin last played the character in 2012, and has seemed to all but officially retire from show business since. Should Sorkin return,
Batman and Harley Quinn would truly serve as a love letter to long-time fans.
