9 Actors Who Played Batman on Big Screen Over 9 Decades

Ever since the inception of the saga of Superman, superheroes began to become the trend. The instant success of Superman created a demand for more and more heroes of such sort. It was only a year after the birth of Superman that Bob Keane gave birth to the Dark night. In the very beginning he was designed and made to look like or closer to Superman but he originally had wings, reddish tights, and a small domino mask. It was Bill Finger who suggested few changes in the original character design which later became the patent trade mark of batman. He replaced the mask with a cowl, removed the reddish tights, replaced wings with cape and added gloves and boots to the original design. He devised the original identity of the Dark Knight and came up with a name Bruce Wayne which later became his true identity.

Inspiration of Batman may have been taken straight from Superman but in no way did he replicate the red and blue giant that can only be slain by the use of a green stone. Batman was engineered to be a superhero who would be different then Supermen in every aspect.

Much like Superman, many actors got the chance to wear the black armour of the Caped crusader (To read about the 16 actors who played Superman, click here). In total, there have been 9 actors who portrayed the role of the Batman in front of the screen.

1. Lewis G Wilson

Wilson was the first actor to have portrayed the role of Batman on screen. He took the role of the charming prince of Gotham at a very young age of 23 but, could not play the role up to the mark. He had a flabby body which failed terribly to capture audience’s attention.

2. Robert Lowrey

Robert was a prolific actor who had already been in many blockbuster flicks before he played the role of Batman. Unlike Lewis, Robert was an ace artist who took over the role and made it his and out did Lewis’s shabby looking batman. Although, he never got the chance to be Batman again in a movie.

3. Adam West

Adam West took over the role of Batman in 1966 and he was third in line to do so. Apart from predecessor Robert Lowery, Adam West nearly destroyed the image of Batman. He played the role of crime fighting badass for two more years before it was taken down. His life then took an ill turn and he was forced to wear the cape for public appearances, just so to make the ends meet, Later in his career he got the chance to give his voice for the Dark Knight in “The New Adventures of Batman” and “Super Friends”.

4.Michael Keaton

Despite receiving flank and huge uproar of fans against him taking on the role of beloved Batman, his portrayal of batman blew the fans off their hate train and they all simply started loving the guy. He later on played the role again in a sequel called “Batman returns” in 1992.

5. Val Kilmer

No one remembers him ever playing the role of Bats but, that won’t change the fact that the did wore the cape once, when the batman was turned over to a new director and the role was offered to Val Kilmer. It has been reported that he took on the role of batman without even reading the script and directly jumped into it. Kilmer was Batman in the movie “Batman Forever’’ and that remained his only film where he played the role as he was too childish and impossible kind of a person to deal with. He was then offered to play the role again in Batman & Robin which he declined due to bitter memories and moments he had on the sets of Batman Forever.

6. George Clooney

Although the words George Clooney and fail will rarely be ever used in a sentence, he failed as a Batman and was never able to win over the fans. Had he played the role in some other time, he could have done a much better job. Failure of Batman & Robin comprised of more than just him as the fans didn't enjoy their superhero flaunting his nipples on the silver costume and the film had close to no plot at all. As a result, his portrayal of Batman had the correct recipe of becoming a total disaster. Poor Clooney! We love him, but can’t ever forgive him for nearly killing the franchise.

7. Christian Bale

He is by far the most loved and cherished actor who has ever donned the cape of the Dark Knight. He was hand-picked by the director Christopher Nolan to play the role of the Batman. Christian Bale already commanded a commendable amount of fan following and his portrayal of Gotham’s hero only gave an impetus to his popularity and celebrity status. He played the role of Batman in 3 movies, all directed by the ace director. Safe to say that Christian Bale was destined to play the Batman as he is considered the best till date.

8. Will Arnett

“The Lego Movie” starred superheroes from various films and movies that broke all the boundaries and barriers that kept each of them away from each other. The world wasn't ready for this one at all, it stormed the screen and surprised everyone. Although Will never wore the suit but he did give his voice for Batman in the Lego Movie. This Batman was different and unlike all others, he cracked jokes, even sang songs and acted silly over screen, which left the viewers in split when they saw this hysterical version of Batman. Will’s Batman was exclusive, as we doubt anyone would ever repeat what Will did with Batman in Lego movie. All we can say is “Thank You Will” for introducing us with lighter side of the ever serious, hothead of Gotham city.

9. Ben Affleck

Ben Affleck — we finally made it down to him. As we can see and hear from what the world has to say, Affleck trumped the critics who ever doubted him. He played the best Batman he could and critics have nothing but kind words for the man. Luckily for you guys the movie has just released over the big screen so if you want to see him in action you can do it just by heading over to the nearest theatre. Judging by the reports and what director Zack Snyder has to say about Affleck’s Batman, we can see him playing the role of crime fighting vigilante of Gotham for quite a long time as he may appear in his own solo movies in the near future.

Even though the Origin of Batman was inspired from Superman, there haven’t been nearly same amount of actors who played the Dark knight. Batman had more success and in lot lesser time on the big screen than Superman. It is safe to say that even though originally being the inspired version of Superman, Batman has been showered with more love than Superman. I am sure that each has its own die-hard fans but Batman trumps Superman in popularity as is evident from box office collections.

Author- Ayank Chourasia

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