1989’s Batman is widely regarded as a time-tested, transformative entry for the comic book movie genre, and its $411.5 million worldwide gross ($872.8 million adjusted for inflation) certainly shook an unsuspecting film industry to its core. However, for actress Sean Young, who was initially set to co-star in the film as Vicki Vale opposite Michael Keaton’s Caped Crusader, it represents a point in which misfortune pulled her away from a prospective mainstream breakthrough. Not only did a pre-production accident force her off the film, but the scene for which she was preparing ended up getting cut from the movie!

Director Tim Burton’s choice of Young for Batman’s leading lady role as photojournalist Vale seemed auspicious since it brought the genre experiment a rising star with pertinent gravitas from roles in then-recent offerings like Blade Runner and Dune, along with dramas such as No Way Out and Wall Street. It...