The iconic superhero, Batman, has been an incredibly well-known figure for 83 years. His first debut was in May of 1939, in Detective Comics No. 27 (DC). Due to Batman’s immediate success, the Bat quickly gained his own comic series. Batman #1 was released in the spring of 1940. Since then, Batman has become one of the most famous superheroes in the world. Batman’s first on-screen appearance was in 1966, when Batman aired on ABC. In this instant hit, Adam West played a latex-covered, silly Batman—a stark contrast from The Batman. Since then, a number of actors have played their own version of Batman. In this article, I’ll be comparing my top three—Micheal Keaton, Christian Bale, and Robert Pattinson.

In 1989, Batman was released, starring Micheal Keaton as Bruce Wayne, Jack Nicholson as the Joker, and Billy Dee Williams as Two-Face. Tim Burton directed this dark tale, which went on to win many academy awards. Just about any movie with Tim Burton involved will earn my stamp of approval, but this one is particularly great. Keaton plays an iconic Batman in this film, and I have to give him kudos for being the first in this era of Batmen. To me, he seems to be a mix of Bale and Pattinson’s Batmen. He’s smooth like Bale but is still obviously suffering from his past like Pattinson. Unlike the other two Batmen, he’s awkward and funny at times. It makes him appear much more approachable and “normal.” Overall, this is an excellent movie and Keaton is an outstanding Batman.

From 2005 to 2012, Christian Bale played Batman in the Dark Knight trilogy. These movies also star Cillian Murphy, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Heath Ledger, Tom Hardy, and Anne Hathaway. Bale is often crowned the title of best Batman, and this trilogy had a long reign as the best Batman movie. Bale’s Batman is the perfect mix of brooding and snarky, always throwing in a one-liner before fighting a villain. But in my opinion, Bale is a better Bruce Wayne than Batman. He plays a perfectly suave, rich heir to the Wayne fortune, but his Batman feels unnatural. His voice is incredibly forced and seems to be drowning in his huge suit. The Dark Knight series is fantastic, but I think the overall movie is better than Bale’s specific Batman. 

Lastly, Robert Pattinson in 2022’s The Batman. This movie was absolutely astounding— I saw it twice in movie theaters and am so excited to stream it on HBO Max. Not only is the cinematography breathtaking, but the plot is captivating, and Pattinson is the perfect Batman. Pattinson’s Batman is a detective, and we get to see him working closely with Commissioner Gordon. Even though he’s the big, bad, Batman in his authoritative Bat-suit, he’s still very human out of it. This Batman is still dealing with the trauma of his parents’ death, and actively working to make sense of the past. Though it’s nice to see a humorous Batman with plenty of one-liners, that’s not really who Batman is. Batman is traumatized and is constantly re-living the death of his parents. He’s not light, funny, and covered with spandex—his goal is to be feared by criminals, not make them laugh. Pattinson also takes in Batman’s aversion to killing. The other Batmen haven’t exactly ignored this, but it’s more of a clear character decision from Pattinson. The Batman is fantastic, and Pattinson is even more so. 

It’s hard to come to a conclusion on my favorite Batman; each actor has left their unique mark on the character. It’s a close call, but I think the best Batman is Robert Pattinson. He’s an incredible actor with great range, and the best Batman yet. 

P.S: a VERY honorable mention to Will Arnett as Lego Batman. If he was in the running for best Batman in this article, he would’ve easily won.

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