Created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger in 1939, DC’s The Batman has featured in many films over the years. Michael Keaton, Christian Bale, and Robert Pattinson are just a few of the actors who have taken on the role of the Caped Crusader, thrilling cinemagoers who were excited to see their favourite hero on the big screen.
Below, we list all of the Batman films that have been given a theatrical release. As such, this guide does not include the large number of animated Batman films that have been given a straight-to-video or streaming release. Also absent from this list is Joker, as Batman didn’t make an appearance in that celebrated film.
Batman will be returning to the big screen in 2025 in The Batman Part II. But before the Bat-signal lights the sky to usher in Bat-fans to theatres once more, here are all of the other major releases that have featured DC’s ‘world’s greatest detective.’
Batman: The Movie
US Release Date: July 30, 1966
Worldwide Box Office: N/A
Director: Leslie H. Martinson
Metascore: 71
Main Cast:
Adam West (Batman), Burt Ward (Robin), Lee Meriweather (Catwoman), Cesar Romero (Joker), Burgess Meredith (Penguin), Frank Gorshin (Riddler), Alan Napier (Alfred)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
The Dynamic Duo faces four supervillains who plan to hold the world for ransom with the help of a secret invention that instantly dehydrates people.
Bat-Quote:
Batman – Some days, you just can’t get rid of a bomb.
Batman
US Release Date: June 23, 1989
Worldwide Box Office: $411.6 million
Director: Tim Burton
Metascore: 69
Main Cast:
Michael Keaton (Batman), Jack Nicholson (Joker), Kim Basinger (Vicki Vale), Michael Gough (Alfred), Pat Hingle (Commissioner Gordon), Billy Dee Williams (Harvey Dent)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
The Dark Knight of Gotham City begins his war on crime with his first major enemy being Jack Napier, a criminal who becomes the clownishly homicidal Joker.
Bat-Quote:
Batman – Have you ever danced with the devil in the pale moonlight?
Batman Returns
US Release Date: June 19, 1992
Worldwide Box Office: $266. 8 million
Director: Tim Burton
Metascore: 68
Main Cast:
Michael Keaton (Batman), Danny DeVito (Penguin), Michelle Pfeiffer (Catwoman), Christopher Walken (Max Schreck), Michael Gough (Alfred), Pat Hingle (Commissioner Gordon)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
While Batman deals with a deformed man calling himself the Penguin wreaking havoc across Gotham with the help of a cruel businessman, a female employee of the latter becomes the Catwoman with her own vendetta.
Bat-Quote:
Catwoman – I am Catwoman. Hear me roar.
Batman: Mask Of The Phantasm
US Release Date: December 26, 1993
Domestic Box Office: $5.6 million
Directors: Kevin Altieri, Boyd Kirkland, Frank Paur
Metascore: 65
Main Cast:
Kevin Conroy (Batman), Dana Delaney (Andrea Beaumont), Mark Hamill (Joker), Hart Bochner (Arthur Reeves), Stacy Keach (Phantasm), Efrem Zlimbalist, Jr (Alfred), Bob Hastings (Commissioner Gordon)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
Batman is wrongly implicated in a series of murders of mob bosses actually committed by a new vigilante assassin.
Bat-Quote:
Alfred – Vengeance blackens the soul, Bruce. I’ve always feared that you would become that which you fought against. You walk the edge of that abyss every night, but you haven’t fallen in and I thank heaven for that.
Batman Forever
US Release Date: June 16, 1995
Worldwide Box Office: $336.6 million
Director: Joel Schumacher
Metascore: 51
Main Cast:
Val Kilmer (Batman), Jim Carrey (Riddler), Tommy Lee Jones (Harvey Two-Face), Chris O’Donnell (Robin), Michael Gough (Alfred), Nicole Kidman (Chase Meridian), Pat Hingle (Commissioner Gordon), Drew Barrymore (Sugar)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
Batman must battle former district attorney Harvey Dent, who is now Two-Face and Edward Nygma, The Riddler with help from an amorous psychologist and a young circus acrobat who becomes his sidekick, Robin.
Bat-Quote:
Riddler – Riddle me this, riddle me that, who’s afraid of the big, black bat?
Batman & Robin
US Release Date: June 20, 1997
Worldwide Box Office: $238 million
Director: Joel Schumacher
Metascore: 28
Main Cast:
George Clooney (Batman), Chris O’Donnell (Robin), Alicia Silverstone (Batgirl), Arnold Schwarzenegger (Mr. Freeze), Uma Thurman (Poison Ivy), Michael Gough (Alfred), Pat Hingle (Commissioner Gordon)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
Batman and Robin try to keep their relationship together even as they must stop Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy from freezing Gotham City.
Bat-Quote:
Batman – Hey Freeze, the heat is on!
Batman Begins
US Release Date: June 15, 2005
Worldwide Box Office: $373.7 million
Director: Christopher Nolan
Metascore: 70
Main Cast:
Christian Bale (Batman), Michael Caine (Alfred), Ken Watanabe (Ra’s Al Ghul), Liam Neeson (Ducard), Katie Holmes (Rachel Dawes), Gary Oldman (Jim Gordon), Cillian Murphy (Scarecrow), Tom Wilkinson (Carmine Falcone)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
After witnessing his parents’ death, Bruce learns the art of fighting to confront injustice. When he returns to Gotham as Batman, he must stop a secret society that intends to destroy the city.
Bat-Quote:
Batman – It’s not who I am underneath… but what I *do*… that defines me.
The Dark Knight
US Release Date: July 18, 2008
Worldwide Box Office: $1.006 billion
Director: Christopher Nolan
Metascore: 84
Main Cast:
Christian Bale (Batman), Heath Ledger (Joker), Michael Caine (Alfred), Aaron Eckhart (Harvey Dent), Maggie Gyllenhaal (Rachel), Gary Oldman (Jim Gordon), Morgan Freeman (Lucius Fox), Cillian Murphy (Scarecrow)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
When the menace known as the Joker wreaks havoc and chaos on the people of Gotham, Batman must accept one of the greatest psychological and physical tests of his ability to fight injustice.
Bat-Quote:
Harvey – You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.
The Dark Knight Rises
US Release Date: July 20, 2012
Worldwide Box Office: $1.081 billion
Director: Christopher Nolan
Metascore: 78
Main Cast:
Christian Bale (Batman), Tom Hardy (Bane), Anne Hathaway (Selina), Gary Oldman (Jim Gordon), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Blake), Marion Cotillard (Miranda), Michael Caine (Alfred), Morgan Freeman (Lucius Fox)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
Eight years after the Joker’s reign of chaos, Batman is coerced out of exile with the assistance of the mysterious Selina Kyle in order to defend Gotham City from the vicious guerrilla terrorist Bane.
Bat-Quote:
Batman – A hero can be anyone. Even a man doing something as simple and reassuring as putting a coat around a young boy’s shoulders to let him know that the world hadn’t ended.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice
US Release Date: March 26, 2016
Worldwide Box Office: $872.7 million
Director: Zack Snyder
Metascore: 44
Main Cast:
Ben Affleck (Batman), Henry Cavill (Superman), Amy Adams (Lois Lane), Jesse Eisenberg (Lex Luthor), Diane Lane (Marth Kent), Laurence Fishburne (Perry White), Jeremy Irons (Alfred), Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
Batman is manipulated by Lex Luthor to fear Superman. Superman´s existence is meanwhile dividing the world and he is framed for murder during an international crisis. The heroes clash and force the neutral Wonder Woman to reemerge.
Bat-Quote:
Alfred – Everything’s changed. Men fall from the sky, the gods hurl thunderbolts, innocents die. That’s how it starts, sir. The fever, the rage, the feeling of powerlessness that turns good men… cruel.
Suicide Squad
US Release Date: August 5, 2016
Worldwide Box Office: $747 million
Director: David Ayer
Metascore: 40
Main Cast:
Ben Affleck (Batman), Will Smith (Deadshot), Jared Leto (Joker), Margot Robbie (Harley Quinn), Viola Davis (Amanda Waller), Jai Courtney (Boomerang), Jay Hernandez (Diablo), Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje (Killer Croc), Cara Delevingne (Enchantress), Joel Kinnaman (Rick Flag)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
A secret government agency recruits some of the most dangerous incarcerated super-villains to form a defensive task force. Their first mission: save the world from the apocalypse.
Bat-Quote:
Harley Quinn – I’m known to be quite vexing. I’m just forewarning you.
The Lego Batman Movie
US Release Date: February 10, 2017
Worldwide Box Office: $312 million
Director: Chris McKay
Metascore: 75
Main Cast:
Will Arnett (Batman), Michael Cera (Robin), Rosario Dawson (Batgirl), Ralph Fiennes (Alfred), Zach Galifianakis (Joker), Jenny Slate (Harley Quinn), Jason Mantzoukas (Scarecrow), Conan O’Brien (Riddler), Doug Benson (Bane), Zoë Kravitz (Catwoman)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
A cooler-than-ever Bruce Wayne must deal with the usual suspects as they plan to rule Gotham City, while discovering that he has accidentally adopted a teenage orphan who wishes to become his sidekick.
Bat-Quote:
Alfred – Sir, if you don’t mind my saying, I’m a little concerned. I’ve seen you go through similar phases in 2016 and 2012 and 2008 and 2005 and 1997 and 1995 and 1992 and 1989 and that weird one in 1966. Do you want to talk about how you’re feeling right now?
Justice League
US Release Date: November 17, 2017
Worldwide Box Office: $657.9 million
Director: Zack Snyder/ Joss Whedon
Metascore: 45
Main Cast:
Ben Affleck (Batman), Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman), Jason Momoa (Aquaman), Ezra Miller (The Flash), Henry Cavill (Superman), Amy Adams (Lois Lane), Ray Fisher (Cyborg), Jeremy Irons (Alfred), Diane Lane (Martha Kent), Ciarán Hinds (Steppenwolf), J.K. Simmons (Commissioner Gordon)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
Fueled by his restored faith in humanity and inspired by Superman’s selfless act, Bruce Wayne enlists the help of his new-found ally, Diana Prince, to face an even greater enemy.
Bat-Quote:
Batman – I’m putting together a team of people with special abilities. See, I believe enemies are coming…
Zack Snyder’s Justice League
US Release Date: March 18, 2021
Worldwide Box Office: $658 million
Director: Zack Snyder
Metascore: 54
Main Cast:
Ben Affleck (Batman), Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman), Jason Momoa (Aquaman), Ezra Miller (The Flash), Henry Cavill (Superman), Amy Adams (Lois Lane), Ray Fisher (Cyborg), Jeremy Irons (Alfred), Diane Lane (Martha Kent), Ciarán Hinds (Steppenwolf), J.K. Simmons (Commissioner Gordon)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
Determined to ensure that Superman’s ultimate sacrifice wasn’t in vain, Bruce Wayne recruits a team of metahumans to protect the world from an approaching threat of catastrophic proportions.
Bat-Quote:
Alfred – How do you know your team’s strong enough? If you can’t bring down the charging bull, then don’t wave the red cape at it.
The Batman
US Release Date: March 4, 2022
Worldwide Box Office: $771 million
Director: Matt Reeves
Metascore: 72
Main Cast:
Robert Pattinson (Batman), Zoë Kravitz (Selina Kyle), Jeffrey Wright (Jim Gordon), Colin Farrell (Penguin), Paul Dano (Riddler), John Turturro (Carmine Falcone), Andy Serkis (Alfred)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
When a sadistic serial killer begins murdering key political figures in Gotham, Batman is forced to investigate the city’s hidden corruption and question his family’s involvement.
Bat-Quote:
Batman – Our scars can destroy us, even after the physical wounds have healed. But if we survive them, they can transform us. They can give us the power to endure, and the strength to fight.
The Flash
US Release Date: June 16, 2023
Domestic Box Office: $269 million
Director: Andy Muschietti
Metascore: 55
Main Cast:
Ezra Miller (The Flash), Michael Keaton (Batman), Ben Affleck (Batman), George Clooney (Batman), Sasha Calle (Supergirl), Michael Shannon (General Zod), Ron Livingstone (Henry Allen), Kiersey Clemons (Iris West), Jeremy Irons (Alfred)
Synopsis (from IMDB):
Barry Allen uses his super speed to change the past, but his attempt to save his family creates a world without superheroes, forcing him to race for his life in order to save the future.
Bat-Quote:
Batman – Yeah, I’m Batman!
Which is your favourite Batman movie? Let us know in the comments below.