Will Arnett hasn't asked former Batman's for advice

7 February 2017

Will Arnett hasn't asked former Batman actors Michael Keaton and Ben Affleck for advice on portraying The Caped Crusader.

Will Arnett

The 46-year-old actor is to play a miniature version of the superhero in 'The Lego Batman Movie', and in a bid to put his own spin on the DC Comics character, he's avoided asking for tips from the first ever Batman, Keaton and Affleck, who portrayed him in several films including most recently, 'Suicide Squad' and 'Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice'.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, he said: "I don't have a phone.I met Michael Keaton last year which is pretty awesome.

"I'm such a big fan of his in general, and I loved -- he was the first Batman on film and I just loved what he did and I think he's awesome. And then I don't really know Ben but I've kind of gotten to hang out with him a few short times over the last year and he's a great dude. He plays this crazy brooding really muscular feels like he's going to knock you out of this planet Batman. So that's cool."

Meanwhile, Arnett is keeping tight-lipped about the voice he has gone for his lego-made part as he claims he's not allowed to spill details due to legal reasons.

Asked if he can reveal his voice, he said: "I can't. I'm all lawyered up. It's a Lloyds of London insured thing with Warner Brothers, Time Warner, and a bunch of other corporations out of the Cayman Islands and stuff."

Meanwhile, the movie is said to feature a number of hidden references to the DC Comics universe.

Director Chris McKay has promised the upcoming family film will make superhero fans happy because he tried to incorporate as many characters from the comic books, original animated series and previous Batman movies into his saga as he possibly could.

And for some that he couldn't get the rights to, or were deemed too scary for family viewing, he found other ways to get in a mention.

He said: "I just kept going until someone eventually said, 'We can only make this many or we can only get the rights to this many or we can't do this character because it will scare children.'

"If we didn't get a character, there's something in the signage of Gotham city, or a reference in a newspaper headline... There are little Easter eggs, some very overt.

"It's definitely a deep dive if you love movies, love comics and love Batman."