Here are all seven Batman actors ranked — our attempt to break down what makes a Batman performance great.
We aren’t including the animated Batman actors — like the excellent Kevin Conroy — but hold them all in very high esteem. We’re going with only live-action because voice acting and on-camera acting are different skills.
Of course, these things are subjective, and Bat-passions run high, so don’t be shy about telling us if you disagree.
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And now, all seven Batman actors ranked worst to best, starting with (sorry) the worst:
George Clooney
Warner Bros.
We couldn’t possibly give a more harsh assessment of George Clooney’s Batman than George Clooney has given himself. He played the Caped Crusader in one film, 1997’s Batman & Robin, and delivered a merciless review.
“When I say Batman & Robin is a terrible film, I always go, ‘I was terrible in it,” Clooney told GQ. “Because I was, number one. But also because then it allows you the ability to say, ‘Having said I sucked in it, I can also say that none of these other elements worked either.’ You know? Lines like ‘Freeze, Freeze!’”
He’s on to something: No actor could have pulled off the role as written. And the nipples on the Batsuit didn’t help the situation.
Ben Affleck
Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill in Batman v Superman. Warner Bros. – Credit: Warner Bros.
We know we may be calling up the wrath of the Snyderverse army, but here we go.
Ben Affleck could have been the best Batman: He has the height and build to be imposing, and the sensitivity and nuance as an actor to capture the wit, brilliance and pain of a billionaire by day and vigilante at night, torn between his identities: Which is the disguise, Bruce or the Batman?
But the films that features Affleck’s version of Batman — Batman v Superman and Justice League (both the Joss Whedon and Zack Snyder versions) were messy at best and leaned too hard into the gritty, serious, militaristic version of Batman.
They allowed little room for nuance or exploration of one of the 20th century’s greatest literary characters.
Val Kilmer
Warner Bros. – Credit: C/O
The recently departed Val Kilmer had an easy, airy charm that made him one of the best Bruce Waynes: He’s very believable as a man effortlessly phoning in his day-to-day interactions so he can focus on the more important business he does at night.
Kilmer also looked right as Batman — we kind of like when Batman isn’t too bulky, and lets his equipment and detective skills do a lot of the work.
His Batman movie, Batman Forever, gets completely taken over by Jim Carrey’s hammy Riddler, which means Kilmer didn’t get enough to do. But we like Val Kilmer a lot and wish he’d made more Batman movies.
Also Read: 7 Weird Things About the Batman and Robin Relationship No One Likes to Talk About
Adam West
Adam West and Burt Ward in Batman. ABC – Credit: 20th Century Fox
For decades, Adam West was the Batman — and an utterly delightful one. In his late ’60s movie and TV show, and for decades after in syndication, he played Batman as a kindhearted straight shooter who relied on wits and humor, not intimidation, to fight crime.
He and his youthful ward Dick Grayson (Burt Ward) played it straight to leave space for a colorful array of guest stars to chew the scenery.
The whole thing just worked: The writing was full of clever twists, the action set pieces were cooler than any others on TV at the time, and the self-conscious silliness (BAM! SOCK! POW!) gave serious people permission to sit back and enjoy themselves.
Adam West was key to holding it altogether. He was a generous lead, never got too showy, and had the confidence to wear a silly costume with panache. We love him and the Batman TV show.
Robert Pattinson
Lt. James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) tries to hold back The Batman (Robert Pattinson). Photo by Jonathan Olley/DC Comics – Credit: Warner Bros
Robert Pattison offers perhaps the most angsty take of all the Batman actors. There’s always a tension between whether to lead with the Batman identity or the Bruce Wayne identity, and Pattinson’s Wayne/Batman truly doesn’t know. He’s lost and adrift, which feels true.
Matt Reeves’ 2022 The Batman leans hard into the detective angle of Batman, presenting him as a crime solver, first and foremost, who leans into his gadgets and tricks only to carry out the grim work of busting bad guys.
Robert Pattinson may one day turn out to be the best of all the Batman actors. Let’s see how the next couple of Batman movies go.
Also Read: All 10 Batman Movies Ranked Worst to Best
Michael Keaton
Michael Keaton in Batman Returns. Warner Bros. – Credit: C/O
It’s hard to believe it now, but the revelation that Michael Keaton would play the Caped Crusader in Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman was greeted with almost universal skepticism: He wasn’t big and brawny, and was best known at the time for comedic roles like Mr. Mom.
But Keaton was an outstanding Bruce Wayne: Calculating, eccentric, tortured. And while some Batman actors play Batman as the real guy, and Bruce Wayne as his secret identity, Keaton played Bruce Wayne first, and Batman second. The Batman identity was the means to an end.
Keaton was arguably even better in Batman Returns, Burton’s 1992 Batman sequel, than he was in Batman. And it was thrilling to see him return in The Flash, wearing flip-flops, as a seen-it-all, decades-older version of himself. He was the most relatable of all Batman actors.
Christian Bale
Batman Begins. Warner Bros. – Credit: C/O
Christian Bale may be the greatest Gen X actor, a chameleonic master of accents who seems to delight in disappearing into roles — much like Gary Oldman, who played opposite him in Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy as incorruptible cop James Gordon.
Bale admirably went all-in as both Batman and Bruce Wayne, never winking at the audience, and instead playing the dualistic hero as grimly committed to a mission that brings him no joy. Yes, Bruce Wayne had plenty of wry moments, but the jokes were always about the absurdity of the moments he was in, not distancing himself from the material.
In addition to acting chops, Bale’s Batman had a raw, imposing physicality that made him believable as a brawler, as well as a genius. And Nolan served him well by surrounding him with a cast that made him look good at every turn, including stalwarts Alfred (Michael Caine), Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman) and the aforementioned Oldman.
We know: Some of the things we like most in other Batman actors’ performances are missing from Bale’s version. But Bale just committed so completely to his Batman that he also made him our Batman.
Let us know in the comments. Also, you might also like this list of Weird Things About the Batman and Robin Relationship That No One Likes to Talk About.
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Main image: Batman Forever. Warner Bros.
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