Joel Schumacher
General Information
Birth Name:	Joel T. Schumacher
Birth Date:	August 29, 1939
Birth Place:	New York, New York, U.S.
Death Date:	N/A
Batman Media Directed:	Batman Forever Batman & Robin

Joel T. Schumacher directed Batman Forever and its sequel Batman & Robin after Tim Burton was forced to step down from the position of director.

Batman ForeverEdit

After Batman Returns was deemed too dark and scary for kids, although a box-office success, Tim Burton was kicked off as director of the third Batman movie and replaced with Schumacher (Sam Raimi, director of the Spider-Man films, was also considered to do the 3rd Batman film).

Once Batman Forever started production, Michael Keaton dropped out of the role of Batman, claiming that he didn't like the script which Schumacher had commisioned for the film. When recasting Batman, Schumacher chose Val Kilmer after he saw Tombstone, a movie of his.

Batman Forever was also a box-office success, gaining 50 million during the opening weekend. Batman Forever was the first film to gain this amount of money during the opening weekend, though it was beaten two years later by The Lost World, which managed to make 70 million on its opening day. Although Batman Forever was a success, it recieved mixed reviews from critics.

Batman and Robin Edit

Schumacher was immediately chosen to direct the sequel after Batman Forever's financial success. George Clooney replaced Val Kilmer after Kilmer stepped down, feeling that the character of Batman was becoming marginalised by the villains. Kilmer was apparently hard to work with, according to Schumacher, during Batman Forever and did not want to work on Batman & Robin. Batman & Robin was a moderate Box-office success but however, it was a critical failure. Batman and Robin is considered the worst Batman film to date and Schumacher himself later apologized for the film in the 2 Disc Batman and Robin DVD for Batman & Robin, arguing that his only intention with the film was to entertain.

He has also made the argument that many of the questionable filming decisions he made were at the behest of Warner Bros., who wanted to further merchandising sales requesting as many gadgets and vehicles be included as possible. Robin actor Chris O'Donnell has likewise made similair statements in Schumacher's defense.

Personal Life Edit

Joel Schumacher said he is openly gay.