Is Justice League Heading to Arkham Asylum?

2017 has a lot going on for fans of superhero movies, but there is no doubt that one of the most exciting, or at the very least interesting things happening this year isJustice League. This will be the first time we have ever seen a live-action version of the DC Comics superhero team in a theatrically released movie, so that is a big deal. To add fuel to the potentially awesome fire, it looks like Arkham Asylum may be featured in the movie.

The first clue comes from theJustice Leaguepage onIMDB. Several actors on the page now have their roles listed as “Arkham Guard” and “Lex Luthor’s Guard.” In the Ultimate Edition ofBatman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, one of the scenes that didn’t make it into the original cut showed Batman telling Lex Luthor that he would be heading to Arkham Asylum. Taking that into account, those two IMDB listings make it seem pretty clear thatZack Snyderdecided to include the famed house for thecriminally insaneinJustice League.

Warner Bros. recently revealed the full, core cast list forJustice Leagueand at that point, it was confirmed thatJesse Eisenbergwill be returning as Lex Luthor in the movie, so all signs point to us seeing theDC Extended Universeversion of Arkham Asylum in 2017. We knew we would eventually be seeing the location on screen at some point in the DCEU, with many rumors circulating that much ofBen Affleck’sThe Batmanwould be taking place at Arkham, so this could be serving as a bit of setup for that movie. Even if it is just a quick shot or two, it will probably be exciting for fans to see the new version of Arkham Asylum.

Arkham Asylum has appeared on screen before, but it has never been fully explored to the degree it could and probably should be. TheGotham Citycrazy house was shown at the end ofBatman Foreverwhen The Riddler was locked away. It was also shown briefly inSuicide Squad, but there wasn’t much to the flashback scene it was featured in, so there is a lot to explore in terms of that location in the DCEU. DC Comics readers have been very familiar with Arkham Asylum for years, but the house for the worst of the worst in the DC universe came into the public eye when theBatman: Arkham Asylumvideo game came out in 2009. So Warner Bros. is in a position to bring that now very popular location to the big screen in a big way.

It is no secret that Warner Bros. would have liked a more universally welcoming response to bothBatman V Superman: Dawn of JusticeandSuicide Squadfrom fans, not to mention they would have preferred the movies weren’t trashed by critics. In any case, they both brought in a ton of money at the box office, grossing $873 million and $745 million respectively. Hopefully, directorZack Snydercan course correct this time around and deliver the movie that fans really want to see. Arkham Asylum isn’t enough to make it a great movie alone, but it certainly won’t hurt anything.Justice Leagueis set to hit theaters onNovember 17, 2017.