A History of the Batman in Cinema

The Batman... not the 2022 release, I am talking about the character. A deeply flawed yet interesting protagonist of 13 films and yet always changing in his complicated history. Sometimes, he's allowed to kill, other times he's expected to be morally opposed to it. While I have my personal takes, his history is far from the most uninteresting thing and provides us with an opportunity to inspect Hollywood in an interesting way. Let us delve into what has made Batman such an influence in today's culture.

First a Comic...

Bill Finger and Bob Kane (I will credit Bill Finger more) were the creators of the original comic concept of Batman. In this original version, he was not a developed character nor the most iconic version of the character. He wore a bat costume, used tools, and fought crime. Alfred didn't join him until nearly four years after, and ironically Robin was the first character to be associated with Batman. It took a few years to nail him down and his cast, but eventually they had a troubled billionaire with dead parents and a ton of issues who refused to kill as his basic guidelines. He was dark, brooding, and quite serious, but people attached themselves to him because of the murder of his parents. A random violent tragedy causing the breaking of a psyche resulting in the crime-fighting vigilante Batman? Behold, the character of Batman is now iconic! But, when would his first movies start?

Now a Movie and a Series: Adam West

His first serial was in 1943, which actually was the official introduction of Alfred into Batman mythology. The serial was barebones and basic, as it came out mid-WW2 and was the introduction of many to the character. However, this garnered serious popularity for the character moving forward. He'd have many serials and series until the 1960s, when one stuck. Batman, starring Adam West and Burt Ward, would last for several years and have crossovers with other TV characters and even a rogues gallery. While his villains were introduced in the mid-40's and 50's, many of their appearances would become iconic here. The Joker, Mr. Freeze, the Riddler, Poison Ivy, and Catwoman all became mainstays in this series. This would be seen as the main definitive Batman, but would horrifically scar the character in the public eye. Now, he was seen as campy and goofy. The movie, released in 1966, would share a similar tone. Indeed, Batman, although turning dark in the comics throughout the 70's and 80's, would be seen as too silly a character to ever get a serious movie. Until...

Redefining the Brand: Michael Keaton and Kevin Conroy

The 1989 release of Batman seemed to be disastrous from day one. A serious, dark take on the character of Batman would never work! It was directed by Tim Burton, the guy who made Pee-Wee Herman a film, it couldn't be that dark! Plus, Michael Keaton as Batman? That guy from comedies like Night Shift and Mr. Mom? He couldn't be dark or brooding, so this was bound to be a goofy comedy like the previous ones! Casting Jack Nicholson as Joker, however, gave the film a bit more credit on the streets. Then, a trailer released and people saw a gothic city and Batman being dark and mysterious. Give it an amazing logo and you have an iconic film waiting to be released. Michael Keaton delivered the dark yet gothic Batman everyone wanted, surprising audiences with his performance. Jack Nicholson killed it as Joker and delivered a performance unlike any other. This film redefined Batman for a while, giving us the comic book Batman we'd all wanted since Killing Joke and Dark Knight Returns, both of which had come out that decade. The character was finally being taken seriously by Hollywood! Combine that with a 1992 sequel and an animated series, Batman was doing well. Before I move on, I want to address the late yet great Kevin Conroy, voice actor of Batman in the animated series and many games and shows after. He gave the character a voice in animation for years after and it was iconic. It's the voice I hear whenever I read Batman comics. He's easily the best Batman and I hope he rests in peace. But, that being said, the animated series was also doing very well, capturing the dark edge of Batman in a kid-friendly (ish) way. Everything was going great! But...

Sinking into Obscurity: Val Kilmer and George Clooney

Batman Returns didn't do well at the box office and toy sales bombed because of how dark the movie was. McDonalds pulled toys and Warner Brothers went nuts. The concept of a third film being made by Tim Burton fell to the wayside after Warner Brothers insisted on a more child-friendly movie. He left and so did Michael Keaton along with him. New director Joel Schumacher, known for Lost Boys at the time, joined in. A great choice, he's known for dark yet goofy at times, and Batman can do that! However, where things fell apart was the casting. While Val Kilmer was certainly a great choice for Batman, he looked nothing like Keaton. Additionally, they recast Harvey from previous films, where he was played by Billy Dee Williams, and got... Tommy Lee Jones? He's white, but okay, sure. The worst part was upcoming comedian Jim Carrey as Riddler. Combined with a new addition of Robin played by a 25-year-old Chris O'Donnell and this film was confused from the start. While certainly a box-office draw, he was nowhere near a good choice for Riddler in a darker universe. Thus, when Batman Forever came out, the film received middling reviews, although it did well enough. The tone was confused and jarring, supposedly a producer mandate as they wanted to sell toys. Even the first line of the movie comments on this, with Batman going to get drivethrough. This however, was the least of the films production issues. Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey, while fun onscreen, had issues with each other behind them. Tommy Lee Jones hated Carrey and Carrey simply tried his best to survive filming. The film got recut into oblivion and was made more child-friendly from Schumacher's much darker original draft. However, when it came time for a sequel, things would change even more.

By the middle of the 1990's, Kilmer decided not to come back as Batman and the new film had to begin shooting for a 1997 release. George Clooney won out over William Baldwin (related to Alec Baldwin) and filming began in 1996. The film, while less troublesome than the prior film in production, had a feeling like things were off. Alicia Silverstone, actress of Batgirl in the film, complained of body-shaming. Additionally, rumor has it that a more serious actor was considered for Mr. Freeze before Arnold was given the role. Actresses for Poison Ivy were all over the board before Uma Thurman won it. While casting choices were certainly fitting, the tone ended up being decided pretty early on and was described best by Chris O'Donnell: the film felt less like a movie and more like a toy commercial. The audience definitely saw it that way, as the film bombed hard with audiences and critics, being cited as the worst Batman movie ever made. George Clooney publicly apologized for the movie for years, even joking that he ended any further Batman movies. Honestly, it did. Batman stayed in a weird place for several years after, with movie ideas being tossed around repeatedly. A Batman and Superman movie was considered, they tried getting Tim Burton back, and any movie attempts after went to the wayside. However, 2005 brought the winds of change.

Rebuilding the Idea: Christian Bale

After nearly six years without Batman, the newest film began production. It would be made by upcoming director Christopher Nolan (known for Memento and Insomnia at the time). With writing from David S. Goyer, who had Blade on his resume, it seemed promising enough. Christian Bale was eventually chosen as Batman and seemed a decent choice. The film was given enough of an identity separate from previous Batman films and a unique style based on the comics that it became a hit. Batman Begins, released in 2005, put Batman back in the public eye and made the character and its actor a household name. Christian Bale, whom had seen a transformation worth 100 lbs to go from his skinny frame in The Mechanist to his bulky one here, had seen a similar transformation in his career as he was now a massive star. The movie, although hitting high notes in its tone and vision, suffered a bit in fleshing out villains and side characters. Scarecrow, played by Cillian Murphy, was terrific but Ra's Al Ghul, played by Liam Neeson, was lacking significantly. With a majority of Batman's movies working based on their villains, the sequel would need to hit it out of the park in order to keep the momentum up.

The Dark Knight is not only an important part of superhero filmmaking, but a critical film in the history of filmmaking and how to adapt a character to movie form. Its production was massive and had some of the biggest stars in it. With Nolan back to the writing board and Joker teased previously, the film had to live up to the hype. Jonathan Nolan, Christopher's brother, would pen the famous line "you either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain" late into the script, which should've been a clear indicator of its quality already. Heath Ledger was cast as Joker and isolated himself early in production to build the character. Harvey Dent, originally in the previous one in the role Rachel took, now was in this one as a side-character turned villain. Aaron Eckhart, fresh off of Thank You for Smoking, took the role. Production began and went without much of a hitch. It was extensive and filmed in many locations, as the idea was to have multiple visually interesting set pieces. However, it wasn't until the end of production and marketing began that something would set the film apart. Heath Ledger, age 28, died of an overdose. The film, already a media sensation from marketing, was now being set up as Ledger's final film and his biggest performance. When the film finally premiered, it most certainly showed everyone what Ledger had left behind. The film was a success and dazzled audiences and critics. The Joker in this is so terrifying and memorable that many people left remembering him more than the main character. Needless to say, Batman was now a huge deal, even winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor on Heath Ledger's behalf. The film was the beginning of modern superhero movies.

However, this hype came crashing down with its sequel. While certainly not a failure, Dark Knight Rises didn't end things on a positive note. Again, with not too many production issues, filming commenced with new additions such as Anne Hathaway as Catwoman and Tom Hardy as Bane. However, where issues came up was with Tom Hardy's voice. It was too muffled by his face mask, thus it wound up being extremely hard to make out what he was saying. However, their choice to fix it was... not great. They redubbed the dialogue (if you've seen an anime, they do similar things with American dubs), but did not correctly handle sound design. His voice is far too loud and it distracts from ANY scene he's in. The reason people make fun of this movie particularly is because of him. It's nothing against Hardy, he's doing his best, but he cannot make this writing and that voice work at all. On top of that, the film's plot retcons a ton from the previous movie as a result of the early draft featuring Heath Ledger in a primary role, which obviously couldn't happen with his recent death. Thus, they picked a new villain who hadn't had good rep. This did not help. While the film certainly did well and has been received okay, in recent years people have really developed a dislike for this film. It's interesting to see how reception flipped around on these movies. While The Dark Knight has always been viewed as the best, people treat this film the same way they treated Batman Begins on release. People now criticize the acting from certain performers, the plot, and some of the writing choices. However, there is a ton to appreciate; such as the production value, most of the acting, and the solid plot up until the end. That being said, this was the end of Batman for a while. Nothing could top the trilogy... right?

Back to the Writing Board: Ben Affleck

So, this unfortunately requires a ton of setup, as the Ben Affleck casting goes back further than most think. So, to start, a Batman v. Superman movie was conceived as far back as 2001. Akira Goldsman, writer of I am Legend, even got as far as a script and several directors. He teases it in I am Legend, interestingly enough. However, the film only began to get off the ground after Zack Snyder signed on for a new Superman movie. Snyder had plans, BIG plans, for a Justice League trilogy. First, Superman, then a Batman film, then a trilogy of movies. But, first, the studio wanted Superman on the big screen. Obliging, Zack Snyder turned out Man of Steel. It was received okay and did decent at the box office, but many people were turned away by his take on Superman, played by Henry Cavill. He was brooding and edgy, bordering on stealing Batman's territory. Additionally, the character work was weak and there was a clear focus on Dragon Ball-style action and slow-mo above all else. However, he developed a clear fanbase of people who enjoyed his visual storytelling and adored his take on Superman for being "realistic" and closer to the comics than some previous iterations. On the opposite end, there were people calling this the worst Superman, especially after a scene at the end where he breaks Zod's neck. Needless to say, people were torn on this director, but now he was getting something even bigger.

Now, for the reason this area is so long. While Zack Snyder asked for a five-movie deal, he only would wind up getting four initially promised. Agreeing to this proposition, he set to work on his next film: a film revealed at Comic-Con in 2013 to be Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice. Where this film would differ from previous films in the DC comics roster was its crossovers. Batman, Wonder Woman, and hints at other superheroes were promised! Soon, casting began. Ben Affleck's casting as Batman was... divisive again. He had previously played Daredevil in a film hardly anyone liked. This was now another hero and people were not convinced by his previous works. I will not be going over the rest of the cast, but Wonder Woman, Cyborg, Flash, and Aquaman were all promised. That being said, in this massive movie about Batman and Superman finally fighting, a ton of hype was built up about it being the big Marvel killer. It would feature two heroes fighting it off on the big screen, complete with cameos, Doomsday, and a ton of excellent trailers. The marketing for this film was everywhere and everything had gone off perfectly. Add to that a slate of films, which included Justice League 1 and 2, as well as Cyborg, Flash, Aquaman, The Batman, Wonder Woman, Suicide Squad, and Green Lantern (not in that order). There was so much content to look forward to! Well...

The actual film released and... yeah, it was not pretty. Critics ripped it apart for its length, tone, and overall character work. Many characters were underbaked and the plot was overly busy for most people. Batman, however, was well-received. People found Ben Affleck to be an excellent representation of Bruce Wayne and Batman, his brooding take being an excellent fit for this movie. However, I take issue with this version of the character the most, especially here. He is a blatant murderer, a far cry from his comic version who never kills and refuses to use guns. Many people share this opinion, but an equal amount found him to be the best Batman, somehow. This film, however, wound up bombing and causing all future movies to go into question. Justice League's rushed production has already been the subject of another post and I will not touch it here. These two films killed any forward power for a Batman movie with Ben Affleck. Ben Affleck's movie changed heads, then eventually lost its star. With James Gunn now in charge, it is most certain a new actor will be cast in the upcoming Brave and the Bold. However, one film came out and showed us a different take on the Caped Crusader.

A New Triumph: Robert Pattinson

While The Batman was still moving forward, heads at the studio changing resulted in the movie losing Ben Affleck as director. While he was still set to play Batman, Matt Reeves stepped into the director's seat. Personal note: I love this director. He did Cloverfield, Let Me In, and Dawn and War of the Planet of the Apes. His love for filmmaking comes out in every movie he makes. However, keeping my personal feelings aside, he had a clear passion for the character. Interviews showed us a man with a passion for Batman. However, his script soon changed and so the Batman had to change again. Ben Affleck left the project, as now they needed a younger actor. Fancasts were all over, with people like Jon Hamm, Jake Gyllenhaal, and even Jensen Ackles asked about. However, the choices Matt Reeves had were certainly interesting. The first casting, Nicholas Hoult, was actually respected by most. However, the next one was Robert Pattinson, largely known for Harry Potter and Twilight. This ended up being the chosen actor, causing even more division than Ben Affleck. They derided the choice up until release. However, in early 2020, we got our first look at the character. Drenched in red with a score by Michael Giacchino, the suit screamed Year 2 Batman and showed us a brooding Pattinson (now Battinson) behind a mask resplendent of West. The next few years were troubled, however.

While production would ramp up and cast actors like the amazing Paul Dano as Riddler, Colin Farrell as Penguin, Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman, and the criminally underrated Jeffrey Wright as Gordon and even more underrated Andy Serkis as Alfred; things were rough behind the scenes. Not for the reasons the Internet would have you believe (a Batmobile story you wouldn't even dream up), but because of COVID. COVID caused this movie to be delayed from an mid-2021 release to early 2022. Filming was dropped for months as the disease rocked the world. However, it returned with minor issues only. Comments were made during production about rocky relations between actors and directors (Zoe and Robert had an awful story spread about them and a Batmobile, trust me, you wouldn't even dream it up), but none were true. A early look was shown in late 2020 at DC Fandome with 33% of the movie shot and it gave us a look at a gothic crime noir straight out of the comics. Eventually, we would get a second trailer in late 2021 with the second DC Fandome and we got a better look at Matt Reeves' The Batman, featuring heavy use of reds, oranges, and blacks. But, to better review the film, we must make it to release date. How did it do?

The Batman received rave reviews and did surprisingly well post-COVID at the box office. People in particular praised Pattinson's Batman, as well as Wright as Gordon, Dano as Riddler of course, and the unrecognizable Farrell as Penguin. My personal favorite is Serkis as Alfred, being able to sell us on his love for Bruce in only a few scenes. However, my show stealer was Pattinson. Delivering long-winded monologues that felt straight out of a graphic novel was immediately the sign for me that this was my new Batman. The actor nailed the performance, delivering emotional scenes incredibly well and building the character through very few words and an entirely physical performance. He outacts almost every other performer besides Conroy and MAYBE Keaton. His Batman was nearly perfect, but his Bruce Wayne needs work. I assume we'll see a different take in the upcoming sequel, but for now, this is by far my favorite of the bunch. However, we're not quite done with Batman today.

Final note to the future: Brave and the Bold

As we draw to the end of the Batman history in cinema, there's a lot of positives and negatives. Batman as a character will never die, but his films live on. His entire future remains unclear, but Brave and the Bold is the next film for Batman in a cinematic universe and it has yet to start filming or even casting. So, why am I talking about it? Mostly because a) I like to theorize and b) I'm worried. This film is being done by director Andy Muscietti, famous for the It movies from 2017 and 2019, as well as The Flash. While the Flash certainly had scenes that were... not great, its use of Batman is hit or miss. Characterization and action? Awesome! Ending? Not so much. But to end on a positive, I'd like to say my fancasts for the role as well as theories about the movie. The movie appears to be focusing on him and Damian Wayne as well as the rest of the Bat-Family. For each, I'll list reasonings and who the character is.

Batman: Oliver Jackson-Cohen

An actor mostly famous for his role in Haunting of Hill House as Peter Quint, I could see him nailing the brooding yet gentle nature of Batman as an older more-family oriented man. While certainly distant, Batman still cares a bit about his adoptees. This needs to be handled well, so I think he could do it!

Damian Wayne (Robin): No choice here

Too early to tell! With how young this character is, the actor needs to be young. Additionally, he needs to be Arabian, as he's the son of Talia Al Ghul. Make sure you cast someone Arabian and able to play the part!

Dick Grayson (Nightwing): Timothee Chalamet

I can't actually see him accepting a role like this, but he would play it to perfection! About the right age, more than capable of playing charismatic leads, and has some dancing skills (unrelated, might help with acrobatics stuff). We'll have to see though.

Jason Todd (Red Hood): Kit Connor

This young star's been killing it since Rocketman and has shown his chops, I believe he'd be a great choice for Red Hood. By the time this gets made, he might be able to play a great Red Hood. The anger of Red Hood after his time in the Lazarus Pit would definitely be on full-display.

Tim Drake (Red Robin): Aiden Gallagher

Showing off his talents in Umbrella Academy, a few years ago I would've cast him as Damian. However, with his age, he would make a great Tim Drake. He's shown a bit of a focused snark and intelligence in previous roles, he would be more than great as the true heir of Batman.

Barbara Gordon (Oracle): Kaitlyn Dever

This actress certainly looks the part and has the chops from films like Booksmart. Barbara Gordon is a far more compassionate member of the family and would start this film already paralyzed and out of the Batgirl role, so hopefully the actress would be fine with wheelchairs.

Cassandra Cain (Batgirl): Unsure

This actress would likely be an unknown, as Cassandra Cain is not much older than Drake or Damian. So, whomever they cast would be an unknown likely Chinese actress who could play the part. She's often not given much dialogue, so it would be interesting to include her.

Thanks everyone! I'm sorry for the delays as of late, but reviews are back on the menu for the summer! Enjoy this long one as I get back to work.

-Joseph, Double Down Reviews