Creators of animated Harley Quinn series reveal the Batman scene so risqu, DC made them cut it – SYFY WIRE

Compared with the clear-cut noble heroes ofthe DC universe, Harley Quinn gets away with metaphorical (and sometimes real) murder. Being a member of the Suicide Squad comes with a whole set of shady perks the kind of morally dark, R-rated hijinks that Bruce Wayne, one of DCs ultimate dyed-in-the-wool do-gooders, knows to givea wide berth.

Or does he? Now that DC has branched out with more mature takes on superhero tales with HBO-appropriate shows like the animated Harley Quinn series, the creative room to push the boundaries has gotten a lot bigger ...if not on the big screen, then at least in the more experimental reaches of the DC hero pantheon. Voiced by Kaley Cuoco, the toon version of Harley hangs tight (and sometimes even surpasses) her comics and movie counterparts when it comes to frequent swearing, cavorting with the wrong crowd, and cracking random skulls.

But thats Harley. Surely Batman himself wouldnt be tied into the more risqu ...would he? Well, the creative minds behind the Harley Quinn series recently shared with Variety that they tried to make it happen, before the higher-ups at DC descended with a mandate to have Bruce Wayne grappling-hook his way out of what couldve been truly risqu territory.

Its incredibly gratifying and free to be using characters that are considered villains because you just have so much more leeway, said Justin Halpern, one of Harley Quinns co-creators and executive producers, before delving into a tawdry unmade scene one that wouldve taken Batman way outside his typical zone.

A perfect example of that is in this third season of Harley [when] we had a moment where Batman was going down on Catwoman. And DC was like, You cant do that. You absolutely cannot do that. Theyre like, Heroes dont do that. So, we said, Are you saying heroes are just selfish lovers? They were like, No, its that we sell consumer toys for heroes. Its hard to sell a toy if Batman is also going down on someone.

Darkness in all its forms surrounds the Caped Crusader: Its part of his long-running mystique. And theres no question that Bruce has had his share of chances, over the decades, to indulge in some decidedly non-heroic hedonism. Christopher Nolan teased that very idea in Batman Begins, when Bruce (Christian Bale) shows up at his own birthday party looking like a debauched playboy, swilling wine and frolicking with supermodels (though he ended up having a truly heroic reason). But DCs point seems to be that, even with all his wealth and worldly connections,Batman may have seen it all,butlike a stoic superhero, he probably doesnt do it all. At least not as far as they want to confirm on-screen.

Harley, on the other hand, pretty much gets to do whatever she likes and as the first two seasons of the animated series have shown, her appetite for mayhem and hedonism is more than big enough to carry the DC universe on its back. DC hasnt yet revealed a premiere date for Season 3 of Harley Quinn, but its expected to arrive with 10 new episodes sometime later this year (or early 2022) onHBO Max.

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Creators of animated Harley Quinn series reveal the Batman scene so risqu, DC made them cut it - SYFY WIRE