'Crisis on Infinite Earths': Batman's time in the Arrowverse may be limited and that's not necessarily a bad thing
The CW has been going big on Batman references with an easter egg in 'Arrow' Season 8 and the introduction of a 'Batwoman' series. We expect to see a lot more teases building up to the introduction of Kevin Conroy's Bruce Wayne in 'Crisis on Infinite Earths'.
Everybody loves Batman and the fans are eagerly waiting to see the character make his Arrowverse debut, however, the Dark Knight is unlikely to become a major player in the universe. And while we would definitely love to see Batman in action, maybe that's a good thing. Stephen Amell's Oliver Queen / Green Arrow has been a stand-in for Batman in the Arrowverse ever since Season 1 of 'Arrow'. Over the last eight years, Oliver has had run-ins with many major Batman characters like Deadshot (Michael Rowe) and the League of Assassins.
Even though 'Arrow' is ending, letting Batman take over as the greatest hero of the Arrowverse would be a terrible disservice to Oliver. After all, he's the one who's put in the work and bringing Batman into the mix would unnecessarily devalue his accomplishments just for the sake of fan-service.
Besides, what exactly would Batman do in the Arrowverse in the long run? His place as Gotham's Caped Crusader has been taken by Ruby Rose's Kate Kane / Batwoman and while he could help her out with some insights, Kate deserves to be able to protect Gotham without being overshadowed by the veteran hero. There's another reason why Batman's 'Crisis' appearance is unlikely to lead to a more regular role as well. Warner Bros is very strict with how they allow characters to be used across the different shows and movies that they put out.
This means that if a character has a major movie coming up, they are unlikely to be allowed much time on television. That's why 'Arrow' had to write off its Suicide Squad, despite the show's take on the team being much better than the film.
With Matt Reeves' 'The Batman' headed to theaters in 2021, it's unlikely that The CW will get to do much with the character outside of his appearance during 'Crisis on Infinite Earths'. And regardless, after all the many Batmen we've had over the years, do we really even need another Dark Knight?
'Crisis on Infinite Earths' will begin with an episode of 'Supergirl' on December 8 and conclude over on 'DC's Legends of Tomorrow' on January 14.