3) Christian Bale (Batman Begins, The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises)
Filmmaker Christopher Nolan unarguably reinvigorated the Batman franchise for theatrical feature film. With his Dark Knight trilogy, he returned the character to a world that was realistic and tangible, as opposed to Joel Schumacher’s homage to the cartoonish 1966 television series. Central to that success is the portrayal delivered by Christian Bale, who specifically journeyed into the darker side of the Caped Crusader.
While his performance is much parodied – not least by Will Arnett’s Lego Batman – Bale creates a character that is damaged in a fundamental way. His icy, detached demeanour as Bruce Wayne is a legitimate interpretation of the comic book source material, while his depiction of deep-seated rage while in the Batsuit is fittingly sinister.
[zergpaid]2) Kevin Conroy (Batman: The Animated Series, The New Batman Adventures, Superman, Batman: Assault On Arkham, Batman: The Killing Joke And Many More)
Kevin Conroy is widely regarded as being the definitive animated Batman, having voiced the character for over two decades. This achievement in consistency and longevity makes his portrayal of the Caped Crusader the richest and most prolific in the character’s history. In this role, he was also noted as being the first to employ two different voice styles for Batman, and his alter ego, Bruce Wayne.
First featuring as the Dark Knight in Batman: The Animated Series in 1992, Kevin Conroy ended a significant period of absence for the character in terms of animation, and he has remained with Batman ever since.
1) Michael Keaton (Batman, Batman Returns)
Had Tim Burton’s Batman arrived after the upsurge of the World Wide Web, we would no doubt have endured months of disgruntled tweets about the wisdom of casting Beetlejuice as Batman. Thankfully, it arrived in 1989, and Michael Keaton got the chance to dispel every misgiving on his own terms, without drowning in online abuse. The release of Batman, a quarter of a century ago, kicked the Best Batman debate into high gear – a state from which it has never returned. However, in that time, the answer has never changed. Michael Keaton is the best onscreen Batman in a narrative project to date, and the reason is simple.
As an actor, Keaton can perfectly embody a character that exists on the fine line between rationality and psychosis – and that is exactly where Batman lives. He hides in plain sight, behind the everyday mask of a successful businessman, while in truth, he is consumed by a grief and rage that manifests as fierce vigilantism.
The force of his determination is such that he is among the most formidable superheroes, while being entirely just an ordinary human being. Michael Keaton can, in one moment, be romancing Vicki Vale with charming repartee and vulnerability, and in the next, throw the Joker off a roof. The juxtaposition of those two emotional states is not jarring when depicted by Keaton, but are instead, disturbingly natural.
Will Ben Affleck be the one to topple the mighty Michael Keaton from the top spot? Only Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice will answer that question, on March 25th, 2016.