The role of Batman has been played by many actors across the DC character’s over 80-year live-action history. Bob Kane and Bill Finger created Batman in 1939, one of the first superheroes in comic books, following Superman. The Dark Knight’s commercial comic success would translate into an on-screen adaptation far earlier than some may be aware of, as the very first installment of the Batman movie roster arrived in 1943.
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Since that time, there have been a wide array of actors who have taken on the role of Batman in different movies and shows, with many of them making drastic changes to turn the Caped Crusader into their own. Over the years, the many actors who have played Batman have seen the hero characterized in live-action performances as everything from a gritty action star to the light-hearted protagonist of kid-friendly television, showing just how much of a range the superhero has pulled off in his illustrious on-screen history.
1 Lewis G. Wilson (1943)
Batman (1943)
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Lewis Wilson was the first actor to play Batman in live-action. The movie he starred in was simply called Batman, and was released in 1943. This predated the introduction of iconic DC supervillains like the Riddler and Bane, although some villains like the Joker were around then. However, the Dark Knight primarily fought basic mobsters and criminals.
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There have been some truly impressive Batmobiles in live-action over the years, from the 1966 Batmobile driven by Adam West’s Batman to Robert Pattinson’s muscle car version seen in 2022’s The Batman. While I do love the “Tumbler” seen in Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, I was also a big fan of the version driven by Ben Affleck’s Batman in the DCEU.
The Batman movie was a 15-chapter serial where Batman and Robin fought a villain called Dr. Daka, a secret agent from Japan in the days of World War II who had little to no backstory. While Wilson was an actor for 30 years, his role as Batman was still his most famous, though it is now one of the lesser known versions of the character several decades later.
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2 Robert Lowery (1949)
Batman & Robin (1949)
Batman was back in 1949 with Batman and Robin. This was another 15-chapter serial and was a sequel to Batman, but the production replaced the actors, with Robert Lowery replacing Wilson as Batman. This time around, Batman and Robin battled a villain known as The Wizard. Lowery started acting in 1936, and even appeared in the movie, The Mask of Zorro, in 1940 – which is notable since Bob Kane and Bill Finger called Zorro an inspiration when they created Batman himself.
Much like Wilson’s turn as the character, Robert Lowery has essentially been forgotten as Batman, overshadowed by a number of actors since his time in the late 1940s. Still, he is part of Batman history as one of the few to portray one of DC’s most iconic characters.
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3 Adam West (1966)
Batman (1966-1968) & Batman: The Movie (1966)
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Batman didn’t return until 1966, when ABC brought Batman to the small screen, creating one of the most long-lasting depictions of the character in pop culture. In this series, Adam West played Batman, while Burt Ward played Robin. The show was a campy look at the crime-fighting duo, and ended up making way for Batman: The Movie in 1966. Adam West became inextricably associated with Batman from this point onward, and capitalized on this popularity by taking on voice roles as Batman in animated series, bringing his rendition of the hero to even more viewers.
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Adam West remained the definitive Batman for over two decades, and his more light-hearted take on the character stands out among most that have had much more serious takes on Batman. Before the modern takes on Batman came to dominate the discourse around the character, he was really fun, and that was in large part thanks to Adam West.
4 Michael Keaton (1989)
Batman (1989) & Batman Returns (1992)
In 1989, the biggest budget version of Batman to date at the time came to the big screen. Tim Burton directed Batman, casting Michael Keaton in the role of the Caped Crusader. Many fans at the time hated the casting because he was best known for comedies. Keaton remains one of the most beloved Batman actors to this day. Keaton appeared in two Batman movies, with Batman Returns arriving three years later. It was the first portrayal of the character in live-action that was meant to be a much more serious take on the character.
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Related “Big, Fun, Nice Check”: Michael Keaton Responds To Whether Batgirl Movie Cancellation Disappointed Him
Michael Keaton was to return as Batman in the Batgirl movie, and the actor has given a blunt response to if he was disappointed by it being scrapped.
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More than three decades after that, he would reprise his role in The Flash – and while the movie itself did not perform as well, the reaction to seeing the character once more remains a testament to just how long-lived Keaton’s popularity in the role has been. He was slated for another appearance in Batgirl, but that movie was unfortunately written-off, meaning his journey as the Dark Knight is most likely officially over.
5 Val Kilmer (1995)
Batman Forever (1995)
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After Tim Burton left the Batman franchise, Warner Bros. hired director Joel Schumacher to take his place. Michael Keaton also left, with Val Kilmer replacing him in the lead role of Batman Forever. However, Kilmer himself only lasted one movie, and went on to new franchises afterward, having already been a successful actor already at this point with fan-favorite roles in movies like Tombstone, Top Gun, and The Doors.
Kilmer and Schumacher didn’t reunite for the next movie, and the director went looking for a new Batman. Despite only being in one film, Val Kilmer did an admirable job as the character and really dove deeper into Bruce’s psyche outside of being Batman. Batman: Forever wasn’t the best received film in the series, which is a shame given it features some interesting ideas revolving around Kilmer’s Batman.
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6 George Clooney (1997)
Batman & Robin (1997)
George Clooney entered the iconic role of the Dark Knight in 1997, taking on the lead role in the cast of Batman & Robin. The movie saw Schumacher create a more light-hearted version of Batman – one that was largely intended to sell more toys, but which consequently drew ire for the major ways it changed the overall franchise. Clooney’s take on Batman and Bruce Wayne is typically viewed as one of the weaker portrayals of the character in live action.
It was similar in tone to something like Adam West’s Batman but existed in the same continuity as Batman Returns, making it the odd film out in that franchise. In the years since the movie, Clooney has apologized for his portrayal as Batman, in part because the movie’s controversial reception marked the end of Batman on the big screen for eight years.
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7 Christian Bale (2005)
Batman Begins (2005), The Dark Knight (2008), & Batman: The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
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In 2005, Christopher Nolan brought his version of Batman to the big screen and revitalized the entire franchise. Nolan cast Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne/Batman, and took the character back to the start, showing how Bruce Wayne became Batman in Batman Begins. Bale ended up playing Batman in three different movies, with The Dark Knight still considered one of the best Batman movies of all time, as well as one of the best comic book movies in history.
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Christian Bale is still considered by many to be the best Batman to appear in live-action and for good reason. He was fortunate enough to play the character for an entire trilogy, allowing him to further explore the character and give him a proper conclusion that many of the other iterations just never had. Following in Clooney’s footsteps, Christian Bale was a breath of fresh air and the portrayal that most everyone else after is tasked to stand out against.
8 David Mazouz (2014)
Gotham (2014-2019)
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One version of Batman that gets less recognition is that of David Mazouz’s role in Gotham on Fox. This is likely because he was not Batman for most of the series, and wasn’t the lead character in the show itself, which focused more on James Gordon working as a cop while showing Batman villains like the Penguin rising in the background. Mazouz was a teenage Bruce Wayne, watching the city around him and planning his mission to one day try to save the city – with actor Mikhai Mudrik showcasing what the older superhero version of the Dark Knight looked like in the future of this universe.
An interesting aspect of Mazouz’s role as Bruce Wayne, pre Batman, is that many of his villains appeared in the show despite him being a child. It creates an interesting situation where many of them would be much older than him by the time he embraces being Batman. Still, Gotham was more about Gordon and how the villains affected the city rather than focusing on the character of Batman.
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9 Ben Affleck (2016)
Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016), Suicide Squad (2016), Justice League (2017), Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021), & The Flash (2023)
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In 2016, Ben Affleck signed on with DC and took over the role of Batman for Zack Snyder’s launching of the DCEU. He made his debut in Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, where Affleck played Batman as a veteran crimefighter who had lost a lot in his life, including his young ward, as the DCEU’s version of Robin dies before the period the movies are set in. One of the biggest points of contention about Affleck’s version of the character is his willingness to kill those who get in the way of his mission.
Though his time in the franchise was marked by the behind the scenes complicated the DCEU faced as a whole, Affleck’s rendition of the Dark Knight itself was overall received fairly well once he moved on from killing people, especially as the franchise made him the brains behind the creation of the Justice League. His last role as Batman came in The Flash, and although Keaton also portrayed Batman in that film, the two never got to share a scene together despite the multiverse-focused narrative.
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10 Kevin Conroy (2019)
Crisis On Infinite Earths (2019)
While Kevin Conroy is best known for providing the voice of Batman in various animated and video game properties, the actor did play a live-action version of Bruce Wayne in the Arrowverse’s mega-crossover event, Crisis on Infinite Earths. In this version, Conroy plays the Bruce Wayne/Batman of Earth-99, who had been so broken by his work that he became a serial killer instead.
Related Why The Arrowverse’s Live-Action Kevin Conroy Batman Is Still Dividing Fans Even 5 Years Later
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Conroy, for many viewers, remains one of the most definite actors to play Batman, having also voiced him in over 500 appearances. The fact that he was able to portray the character once in live-action was a huge draw of the crossover, and adds extra dimension to both the Arrowverse and DC more broadly. Though it was a short-lived cameo, it was a delight to see Conroy portray Bruce Wayne in live-action.
11 Iain Glen (2019)
Titans (2018-2023)
In Titans, the HBO Max series re-introduced the world to the titular heroes, with Dick Grayson – a former Robin – as the man who helps bring the heroes together. By this time, Grayson hated Batman and was doing everything he could to not be like him. Glen’s take on the character was interesting, to say the least, with some narrative choices that felt antithetical to who Bruce Wayne is.
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When the show finally introduced him, Iain Glen portrayed Bruce Wayne, providing a look at a more storied, experienced Dark Knight. Fantasy fans know Glen as Der Jorah Mormont from Game of Thrones, and he brought an elder statesman personality to Bruce Wayne in Titans. There was also a brief action scene that featured Batman in Titans season 1, but that was before Glen was even cast as the character.
12 Warren Christie (2020)
Batwoman (2020-2022)
Warren Christie got his start with TV shows like October Road, Happy Town, and The Resident, and would go on to show up as Bruce Wayne in Batwoman on The CW. This was a surprising appearance since the show started with Batwoman taking Batman’s place when the Caped Crusader quit and left Gotham City.
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Warren Christie was later revealed to in fact be playing the villain Hush, who had disguised himself as Bruce Wayne. However, he would also play Batman himself during a Batwoman season 2 flashback that showed the character for real.
13 Robert Pattinson (2022)
The Batman (2022), The Batman: Part II (2026), The Batman: Part III (TBD)
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The newest actor to portray Batman in a live-action movie is Robert Pattinson, who took on the role for The Batman, and is coming back for The Batman: Part II set to release in 2026. Much like Michael Keaton before him, fans did not like the casting, having associated him with his role in The Twilight Saga. However, Pattinson has won over most fans and critics with his grounded take on Batman – which both makes sense given the actor’s stellar performances following the vampire romance series, and because he’s discussed drawing from source material like Batman: The Animated Series when looking for inspiration.
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Pattinson’s Batman is the closest a live-action adaptation has gotten to showing the detective side of the character, as the first film really leaned into its noir inspirations. His story continues in The Batman: Part II, which will take place after the events of the spin-off HBO series, The Penguin. With a third Batman film planned for Pattinson as well, he has the opportunity to join Christian Bale as one of the most beloved versions of the character, even though many already believe that.
Batman Created by Bob Kane , Bill Finger First Film Batman (1989) Latest Film The Batman Upcoming Films The Batman Part II First TV Show Batman (1966) Latest TV Show Batman: The Brave and the Bold Video Game(s) Batman: Arkham City , Batman: Arkham Asylum (dupe) , Batman: Arkham Knight , Gotham Knights , Batman: The Telltale Series
Summary
One of the core leading characters of DC Comics, Batman is the face behind his multimedia franchise that has been in circulation for over eighty years, initially conceived by Bob Kane and Bill Finger, appearing in the 27th issue of Detective Comics at the end of the 1930s. The Caped Crusader is the alter ego of billionaire playboy philanthropist Bruce Wayne, a man tormented by the death of his parents who has dedicated his life to cleaning up the streets of Gotham. Batman’s media works range from comic books to tv shows to films and video games. In the films, several actors have donned the cape and cowl, such as Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, Christian Bale, and Robert Pattinson, in the most recent incarnation of the character. The franchise continues to enjoy success more than ever, especially with The Dark Knight trilogy of films and the Batman: Arkham video game trilogy. With a commanding rogue’s gallery of some of the most recognizable villains in the superhero genre, Batman caters to several audiences and offers a wide variety of options to keep him at the forefront of the genre.
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Upcoming DC Movie Releases
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Superman (2025)
Release Date July 11, 2025
- Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow
Release Date June 26, 2026
- The Batman Part II
Release Date October 2, 2026
Superman (2025)
Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow
The Batman Part II
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