Just trying to keep myself entertained while on lockdown and actually been reading some comics that I bought awhile ago and catching up on some shows. So with this free time I feel like discussing who is the best live action Batman/Bruce Wayne as of March 2020. The reason why it is live action only is he all know Kevin Conroy would win in a brutal beatdown if he was included for his voice over work but I will have him included for his cameo on the CW even though that whole part was awful and a disservice to the character.

For me it is easily Bale but more so because of Begins and TDK. Rises is a tricky one for me but overall I find is version of the character the most compelling, developed, and most believable for the world that he is in. I also find this is the version the mostly resembles what Batman should be more closely then the other versions. Although we have not had someone is right out of the comics detail for detail Bale version in the first two movies takes everything I enjoy about the character and put it to the big screen. Next up is Adam West which is 180 degree from Bale. But while Bale is my favorite serious Batman we have West as the campy light hearted Batman. West's Batman is iconic and is able to say everything with a straight face that made kids take him seriously but made adults laugh which is just so full of charm I do not think it can ever be redone.

After that of course it becomes a toss up for Keaton, Affleck, and even Kilmer who I think is a bit under rated for his role in Forever.

 

I would go with Bale. But his Batman voice was just terrible. That really brings his performance down for me. He is the superior actor, and how he trained for the fighting was very impressive. He has the advantage of starring in 3 films, that greatly focused on his character.

 

live action - Michael Keaton

voice actor - Kevin Conroy

honourable mention - Adam West

 

No one as no one has been able to be BOTH Batman AND Bruce Wayne at the same time in live action form.
Michael Keaton was a great Batman though, but his Wayne sucked.
Christian Bale was easily the best Bruce Wayne, but his Batman left a lot to be desired.

 

As mentioned above, Keaton was a good Batman but a bad Wayne, while Bale was a good Wayne but an underwhelming Batman.

West's portrayal put effort into keeping the two personas balanced, but separate. Granted, back in West's era people were more trusting and not too suspicious, and things were low-tech which made the deception easier to manage.

But this scene above shows how underrated West's performance is.

 

The reason why I think Bale is objectively the best is because, on top of also being Batman, he plays TWO versions of Wayne: the real him that's intelligent and concerned about his city and its people, and the arrogant douchebag idiot rich boy version that he pretends to be in front of everyone else for misdirection. I really, really appreciated that whole angle in those movies. By comparison, like 'em or hate 'em, I found Keaton, Kilmer, Clooney and years later even Affleck were all essentially just playing the same guy all the time as Bruce Wayne *and* Batman.

 

Yeah, West gets my vote for best Wayne hands down. West also comes closer to the 1950s-1960s Batman than any of the other actors come close to any other era comic Batman.

 

My vote is going to go with West. West is the only one to do the whole detective thing on a regular basis. Most of them are mostly just crime fighters who dress up in fancy costumes. And, it is the detective thing about Batman that matters to me most.

And, West is the only one to remember that he is a detective first, and villain fighter second.

 

That is the first thing that came to mind concerning Adam West.  

Anyway, West gets my vote. A not-small part of that is the 1966 Batman TV series was the first ever bit of Batman media I had ever seen. Before any comics or cartoons, it was Adam West. And I think his performance is underrated overall. As is the show.

 

Conroy.


"Dark Knight Rises" is so fucking terrible it knocks Bale down a peg; otherwise he'd be my choice.

 

But know for this the only Conroy role that counts here is his awful CW cameo... Not that it was his fault they decided to make him a pathetic, bitter, crippled, loser, and to add insult to injury he dies from what a push or something.

Although I somewhat agree with Rises knocking Bale down a bit but that way I mostly look to the first two movies.

 

I understand that because other parts of Batman are missing in other incarnations. For me what I enjoy about the character is that he has pushed his mind and body to the peak of what a human can be. If we go back to his first origin of him from Detective Comics this is my take away on what Batman should be. Also being the fitness meathead nut that I am that what I like about Bale's Batman is I actually believe he is in the physical shape to be a fighter. When I look at previous Batman before him I am not physically intimidated. Adam West gets a pass for this because he has the height for the role and was not meant to be the serious Batman. But when I look at Keaton, Kilmer, and Clooney I just don't buy them physically for the role. With that said it's a more of a each your own on what traits of the character is most important and I will say West Batman was constantly going detective work in his show.

 

That's all fine and dandy and all, but I'm still there for the detective stuff. As that is where the best storytelling comes from. Anything after that is good, anything before that, and it's just not Batman to me. I'll take fat Batman, as long as he does detective work, over the best physically fit crime fighter actor, (Who is clearly Affleck, if we're going to be honest.).

So, my answer is West. Because he is doing the only thing I am there for. To see Batman solve crimes.

 

Affleck also gets points for that but we all know the stunt double did the majority of the work. Not to say the others did not have stunt doubles but still also even Affleck the biggest he loses points for not being as good as a character as Bale's version for the first two.

 

If we are giving a full list of rankings for live action..

1. Bale: The most balanced and developed version of the character. Best characterization in Batman Begins and The Dark Knight then any other version.
2. West: The classic light hearted Batman who is an example of a more light hearted time and keeps true to the character in a campy world.
3. Affleck: Plays the character well despite some strange writing choices but still feels like a more extreme version of the character. A better direction would have helped.
4. Keaton: Great for the time and brining the character back to a darker tone and has a cool batsuit but his Bruce Wayne feels very unlike Wayne.
5. Kilmer: I actually think he he a bit underrated and could be low key ahead of Keaton/Affleck on the day. Feels more like Batman/Bruce Wayne then Keaton to be honest.
6. Lowery: I actually have the DVD to the serial and enjoyed it a fair amount as a kid. Lowery not bad for a 1949 serial and is worth checking out.
7. Gautier: Rodimus Prime did a good Adam West impression and gets some respect for that.
8. Wilson: I do not recall this version as much but still enjoyed the first ever man to put on the cowl.
9. Mazouz: I enjoyed him first on Gotham but got sick of the show and did not finish it. Eventually the show just got on my nerves.
10. Olson: I mean this kid did not do much but we are getting to the bottom here and I don't have think the kid worse then the two below.
11. Clooney: Not his fault here just a weird casting choice in a weird movie. He does what he can but it is "Batman and Robin" this goes without saying.
11. Conroy: The only time we will ever see Conroy last on a best Batman list and man do I hate typing this because overall he is the BEST but what they did to him in the CW is unforgivable not just to us but to him. To take the most iconic Batman voice of all time and make him a crippled, bitter, loser basically, and just kill him like he means nothing was the biggest let down I have had in a longtime for the character. There were so many more interesting to do with him what they did really was pathetic.

Never watched Titans so Glen will stay out.

 

I like all the reasoning I’m reading. There’s a good case to be made for most of them.

I went with Michael Keaton. I thought he did a good job as both Batman & Bruce Wayne. We got to see (briefly) the businessman side of him in his dealings with Max Shrek. Most of these Batmen seem to forget that they have a company to run in addition to everything else. Also- I love everything about him & Catwoman together. I like the chemistry between him & Alfred. He’s just good overall.

Adam West is also awesome for his era and for what his show was doing, but he’s not my preferred Batman.

Val Kilmer didn’t leave an impression on me one way or the other.

George Clooney was just being George Clooney. Not a good Batman or Bruce Wayne.

Christian Bale was a decent Bruce but his Batman leaves something to be desired.

I do like Ben Affleck as both Bruce & Batman (I’ve only seen him in Justice League), but he was saddled with garbage movies to be in. Still, I like him as B&B.

Haven’t seen those other guys from the 40s, so no opinion there.

 

Of course he didn't do his stunts. It's irresponsible for the actors to do their own stunts, and irresponsible for the studios to allow it too. A stunt double gets hurt, you can replace them the next day, and production carries on. Your lead actor gets hurt, and your production is stopped for the entire duration of his recovery. Which means all those extras and crew members, they are now out of a job. All because some stupid actor wanted to do his own stunts.

 

I dunno. I thought he did well with what he was given. He's one of the only guys to take the role that I thought was believable as an actual rich guy. He has that easy arrogance and self assured entitlement, whereas someone like Keaton (who I do like) always seemed to me to still be a working class guy who somehow got transplanted into a mansion. And personality-wise, even if Clooney was playing Clooney, that still made him very close to the Bronze Age Bruce Wayne I grew up with.

 

I guess I can see that. It just always seemed to me like Nicolas Cage- he’s always playing the same character in everything. - note- I haven’t seen him in anything recent, so if that’s changed, then disregard.

So much of that movie comes down to a horrible script, bad direction & goofy production design. It’d be cool to see what Clooney could’ve done with a good script & all that.

 

Isn’t Conroy playing Bruce as he was in Kingdom Come? Or Batman Beyond for that matter?