Freeze and Ivy Are Back: Batman Should Watch Out!

While Batman is away, his villains are back in action. Over the weekend, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who portrayed Mister Freeze in the 1997 film Batman & Robin, shared a photo of himself with Uma Thurman, who played Poison Ivy alongside him in the movie.

"Freeze and Ivy, reunited. Watch out, Batman," Schwarzenegger humorously captioned the photo. Notably absent from the reunion was George Clooney, who starred as Batman in the film.

Batman & Robin received heavy criticism when it first premiered. The film’s campy style and Schwarzenegger’s pun-filled dialogue, like "What killed the dinosaurs? The Ice Age!" were met with negative reactions. This led to the franchise being rebooted eight years later with Batman Begins, directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Christian Bale. The reboot took on a much more serious, gritty tone, completely shifting away from the colorful aesthetic of Joel Schumacher's film.

Clooney has frequently made fun of his own performance in Batman & Robin, even advising Ben Affleck not to take on the role. However, over time, the cast seems to have made peace with the film, and some critics have even found new appreciation for its over-the-top nature. In 2022, Darren Franich defended the movie’s extravagance, noting that while we have plenty of dark, serious Batman stories now, few films offer the kind of wild excess found in Poison Ivy's antics.

Interestingly, Clooney made a brief return as Bruce Wayne in 2023’s The Flash, though he didn’t suit up as Batman again. Schwarzenegger also reflected positively on his role in the film, discussing Mister Freeze in the 2023 Netflix documentary Arnold. Earlier in the year, at the Oscars, Schwarzenegger made a playful reference to his time in the Batman universe when he presented an award with Danny DeVito, who played The Penguin in 1992's Batman Returns. Schwarzenegger joked, "We both tried to kill Batman," a quip that drew a response from Michael Keaton, the original Batman of that era.

Though Robert Pattinson now wears the cape as Batman, his next film won’t arrive until 2026. Meanwhile, Gotham City fans can look forward to seeing its villains in action in the upcoming HBO miniseries The Penguin, which will center on the criminal underworld of Batman’s universe.