How to word this properly? William Shatner is known for his distinctive acting style, unusual vocal intonation, and very singular form of gravitas. Because of this, he doesn’t fit easily into all movies or TV shows. But there is a subset of projects in which his participation in an absolute boon. And the sequel to the upcoming Batman: Return Of The Caped Crusaders is probably one of them. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the 85-year-old former Star Trek star will be joining Adam West (Batman), Burt Ward (Robin), and possibly Julie Newmar (Catwoman) in the sound booth to lend voices to the animated continuation of ABC’s late-’60s camp classic TV show, Batman.
Shatner will be imbuing the arch-villain Harvey Dent/Two-Face with his sonorous articulations. The facially scarred, chance-obsessed criminal has been portrayed onscreen numerous times before, by actors such as Tommy Lee Jones in 1995’s Batman Forever and Aaron Eckhart in 2008’s The Dark Knight. While Clint Eastwood was briefly considered as an option to play the character on the ABC show, producers ultimately decided against presenting audiences with an antagonist who’d lost half his face to acid. So, in this universe, Shatner will actually be originating the role, for which he seems a perfect fit.
Batman: Return Of The Caped Crusaders will have an extremely short theatrical run on October 10, followed by a digital release October 11. No word on exactly when Shatner’s two faces will be popping up in the sequel.