Summary

  • The Batman movie brings a new, gritty take on the character and his iconic villains, including Riddler, Penguin, and Catwoman.
  • Past Batman films explored these villains extensively, but the new versions offer a fresh perspective and leverage name recognition for marketing.
  • The film takes a realistic approach to the Batman universe, leaving out more fantastical villains and focusing on grounded, gritty storylines.

There's an adage in comics (and soap operas) that no one ever really dies... because sooner or later, they always end up coming back. Maybe it's someone new with the same name, or they're a clone, or they're revived, or they're a version from an alternate reality... in the pages of comic books, literally anything is possible.

2022's The Batman gave us a new, gloomy, rugged take on the character. After Christopher Nolan's fully realized vision, and the wildly underwhelming reign of Ben Affleck as the character, Reeves' approach was a tantalizing "back to basics." But a hero is only as good as his villains, right? In addition to Robert Pattinson's Batman, also witnessed Paul Dano's Riddler, an unrecognizable Colin Farrell as Penguin, and a predictably leather-clad Zoe Kravitz as Catwoman.

Returning Rivals, Batman!

Batman has a rich collective of rogues, but all of these particular ne'er-do-wells have all been featured in earlier Batman films. Played respectively by Jim Carrey (Riddler), Danny DeVito (Penguin), and Michelle Pfeiffer/Anne Hathaway (and Halle Berry in the much-maligned standalone Catwoman picture) in the past, these stories have been well explored in this series already, origins and all. So why do we continue to see new versions of the same tried and tested villains?

A scene from Batman Forever
Warner Bros.

With Christopher Nolan’s measured approach in his Dark Knight trilogy, a trifecta of films that imagined what Batman would be like in a real-world setting, said villains felt handpicked for their attributes. These were driven maniacs who (again, for the most part) mirrored a Batman that was based on some form of reality. Vice-versa, these were villains that could operate by modern-day, human physics.

At their best, Nolan's films were great thrillers that just happened to be centered around a man dressed like a bat. As a shot to the system, these films were also created to wash away any memories of Joel Schumacher’s high camp factor in Batman Forever and Batman & Robin.

Nolan’s subsequent, grittier take trickled down into every other superhero picture and entirely readdressed how audiences went forward with the genre. Left in the cold were the more zany characters like Mr. Freeze - or Clayface, or Orca, or a handful of other possible unseen examples - simply as they didn't seem to fit the "realism." Reeve's Batman seems to, at least for now anyway, continue that trend.

Related: The Batman: Original DCEU Plans, Explained

Murdering His Parents, Again

Danny DeVito's Penguin as seen in Tim Burton's Batman Returns 
Warner Bros.

From a Hollywood executive's point of view, it also makes sense as well. Why risk creating a brand-new character when they know that both Alfred Molina's Doc Ock and various Catwomen have worked on screen before (and have a track record in selling toys and merchandise)? Why plump for someone who we've never seen before - and may well come off as merely ridiculous - when instead name recognition is stable?

The Nolan trilogy ended in 2012, with the release of The Dark Knight Rises - a whole decade ago. Anyone old enough to catch that has grown up and matured, even more so for anyone who was around in the late '80s to catch Jack Nicholson clowning around as The Joker. These former audience members most likely have children of their own now. Recycling The Riddler, say, is an easy enough chance for risk-averse studios to do enough while still appearing fresh; like re-heating that Batman-themed Happy Meal in the microwave.

Take The Penguin as an example: Most current cinema-goers old enough to be able to purchase their tickets today will recognize Danny DeVito as the dude from It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, and probably not for his game-changing role as the all-parts pathetic and disgusting Oswald Cobblepot. As such, Colin Farrell is given free rein to jump into that penguin-shaped seat and claim the role as his own.

Previously…

Michael Keaton in Batman Returns
Warner Bros.

Nostalgia is a powerful drug. We see these and other antagonists return repeatedly because, if old enough, we remember the characters fondly. Hollywood has been following the trial by marketing the same thing they already did by repackaging it for new generations through their reboots and legacy sequels, as we have seen with Ghostbusters Afterlife, Disney's Star Wars Trilogy, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Et al.

Single entries in larger universes are also using nostalgia to bring more audiences with mixed results. 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home, opted to bring back multiple villains from separate Spider-Men’s pasts for an end-all clash with resounding success. The same cannot be said for Michael Keaton's Batman in The Flash, the film that carries the dubious honor of being the worst box office bomb of 2023.

Related: The Batman: What Is the Joker's Role in the Sequel

Another Age, Another Timeline. Anything Is Possible.

With the groundwork of the original comic book source materials (works like The Reign of the Supermen, Flashpoint, and Spider Wars, just to name a few examples), and the on-screen freedom permitted by Enter The Spider-Verse and Days of Future Past years earlier, it seems that all bets are off in terms of who or what can show up and return to our cinemas - deceased or otherwise.

In a more meta respect, the current comic landscape is also mimicking No Way Home's success. Danny DeVito himself penned an official Batman comic book story, featuring his own '92 Penguin falling in love with Catwoman and ridding the current-day world of Covid-19. DeVito went on to say that despite being killed in Batman Returns, he would love to see his iteration of the character return on screen.

Why So Serious?

A scene from The Batman
Warner Bros. Pictures

The Batman was, in many aspects, a return to form for the caped crusader; the movie was made on the groundwork of the original Batman film that was set to start Ben Affleck in the Snyderverse. This version of Batman proved financially successful to be kept around after James Gunn and Peter Safran Took Over DC Studios. However, the stories told in this universe will be separate from the main line of films, the same as Todd Phillip's Joker.

The world of The Batman doesn't seem poised to be filled with marvels and villains in shiny costumes. Their version of the Riddler is, for all intents and purposes, a real-life incel, while the Penguin is a mafia man. We briefly looked at Barry Keoghan's version of the Joker, and he seems to be taking the same cues as Heath Ledger to shape his version of the character, which is an unfortunate choice by itself, as the character would be best served with a new interpretation.

Characters like Poison Ivy, Clayface, Man-Bat, Mr. Freeze, and Salomon Grundy have great backstories but are cartoony interpretations of villainy. Sure, they can be explored, but would it make sense? Would it work to imbue these characters with more tragedy? Could it work out? Frankly, these baddies feel more akin to superhero outings, as their grand schemes seem below such a nasty town as Gotham. Let's hope Matt Reeves takes a bold chance for Batman's future; we would love to see what he does next!