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DC stopped Batman from performing oral sex on Catwoman

"Heroes don't do that," DC apparently decided. The tweetstorm says otherwise.

Jennifer Bisset Former Senior Editor / Culture
Jennifer Bisset was a senior editor for CNET. She covered film and TV news and reviews. The movie that inspired her to want a career in film is Lost in Translation. She won Best New Journalist in 2019 at the Australian IT Journalism Awards.
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  • Best New Journalist 2019 Australian IT Journalism Awards
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Jennifer Bisset
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harleybig

Animated series Harley Quinn.

 Warner Bros.

R-rated animated series Harley Quinn features gore, gallows humor and other adult elements that allow it to make the most of its censor-free home on the DC Universe streaming service. That is, until a recent Variety interview with co-creators and executive producers Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker revealed there's one place no DC superhero will go.

"...in this third season of 'Harley' [when] we had a moment where Batman was going down on Catwoman," Halpern said. "And DC was like, 'You can't do that. You absolutely cannot do that.' They're like, 'Heroes don't do that.'"

Halpern discovered the main reason why the comic book giant won't let Batman perform oral sex on Catwoman.

"So, we said, 'Are you saying heroes are just selfish lovers?' They were like, 'No, it's that we sell consumer toys for heroes. It's hard to sell a toy if Batman is also going down on someone.'"

The animated series beginning in 2019 follows the misadventures of Harley Quinn and fellow villain Poison Ivy, after Harley realizes her boyfriend Joker doesn't love her and breaks up with him.

The pushback has drawn social media responses from Batman actors to DC directors.

"Canon," was all Zack Snyder, the director of HBO Max's Justice League, tweeted along with a picture of... well, see for yourself.

"Does he or doesn't he...?" previous Batman actor Val Kilmer tweeted, along with a GIF from 1995's Batman Forever, in which Nicole Kidman's Dr. Chase Meridian tries to seduce The Caped Crusader. "We could give it a try. I'll bring the wine…" she says.

"Thank you DC for making this Batman moment possible," one tweeted.

The story has also led to more stories regarding Batman's love life resurfacing.

"The recent news story that Batman is not allowed to go down on Catwoman has led me to discover this delightful story of Adam West (The 1960s Batman) and Frank Gorshin getting kicked out of a Hollywood orgy because they wouldn't break character," one wrote.

Even comic book writers have chimed in.

"There was also a little pushback when we did the Green Arrow/Black Canary oral sex scenes in my run with @philhester and @andeparks 20 years ago. But my point to @DCComics editorial was 'Oliver Queen just knows how to make the ladies Quiver. Especially when he hits the bullseye,'" wrote Kevin Smith.

"*Checks why Batman is trending* *Goes back to writing Nightwing, possibly a more... giving hero,*" DC Comics writer Tom Taylor wrote.

Scroll down for more tongue-in-cheek reactions.

Harley Quinn has been renewed for a third season, which will see the series move over to HBO Max, as DC Universe evolves into a comics-only platform.

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