For years, fans of The CW's 'Smallville' wondered about the possibility of bringing the caped crusader into Clark Kent's world, finally providing that live-action Batman/Superman team-up we've been clamoring to see for ages.  Rights couldn't be worked out with Warner Bros' sensitivity toward the Christopher Nolan Batman films, but with the franchise ended, could The Batman find his way to The CW's new DC effort 'Arrow?'

With Deadshot, Deathstroke, and China White shooting their way through Oliver Queen's world for fall CW series 'Arrow,' fans are naturally wondering what potential DC characters they could see over the course of the series.  The shows producers have opted for a grittier, 'Batman Begins' style by shying away from any actual superpowers, but that begs the question...is Batman himself a possibility?

Speaking to IGN, executive producer Marc Guggenheim seems optimistic about the possibility:

Oh, my hope is that we can use him at some point. I think that plagued the 'Smallville' show-runners more than it plagues us because, obviously, the 'Dark Knight' trilogy is over. They're not available to us yet. My hope is that they'll be available to us at some point. That would be awesome. No question, that would be absolutely awesome. But I don't know. That's above my pay grade.

Fans will remember that 'Smallville' famously attempted to secure permission to use a young Bruce Wayne on the series, some speculating that season 3 character "Adam Knight" (‘LOST‘ and ‘The Vampire Diaries‘ star Ian Somerhalder) would eventually be revealed as such, but Warner Bros. didn't want to mix franchises with Christopher Nolan's films.  Batman would eventually put in a 'Smallville' appearance, but in the show's continuing comic form rather than the now-ended TV series.

With Nolan's franchise ended the studio might be more relaxed, even apt to test the character in new mediums as Warner Bros. gears up for an inevitable 'Justice League' franchise.  So while Batman could be on the table eventually, what other DC characters might 'Arrow' afford us?  Guggenheim expanded on the possibility of whether or not other famous comic book characters might pop up:

I would say, "Probably." One of the things we want to do is roll the show out at the right pace. For the most part, I think we've taken the philosophy that things are happening sooner rather than later. I always feel like every time we get the note from the network, "Is this happening too soon?," I feel like we're on the right track. I know as a viewer myself, I'm impatient. I want to see stuff. We're not going to make the audience wait to see characters, plot twists, revelations. I think running out of great characters and great moments is a quality problem to have, and I just want to have them.

What say you?  Do you think there's a shot of seeing Batman matching wits with Stephen Amell's Oliver Queen?  Who would you like to see don the cape and cowl next?  Tell us if you'll be watching 'Arrow' in the comments below!

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