Characters / Batman Film Series: Bat-Family

Main Character Index Bat-Family | Villains (The Joker | Poison Ivy) | Supporting Characters

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Batman

Bruce Wayne/Batman

"If the forces of evil should rise again to cast a shadow on the heart of the city, call me."

"I'm Batman."

The guardian of Gotham City and its richest citizen. An admired philanthropist by day, he fights crime with a black bat-themed suit by night. He dedicated his life to crimefighting after both of his parents were killed when he was a child.

Tim Burton debuted this version of Batman in his eponymous movie, Batman. After Burton's sequel Batman Returns, the visual and tonal continuity of the next two sequels, Batman Forever and Batman & Robin, split off thanks to Executive Meddling, with these movies being helmed by Joel Schumacher. Michael Keaton left the role of Batman and was replaced by Val Kilmer, and he in turn by George Clooney.

After decades of simply being treated as a retool of Burton's continuity with recasts, Schumacher's Batman has since been treated as an Alternate Continuity to Burton's in various media focusing on the latter instead. Most recently, Keaton's Batman reappears in the DC Extended Universe thanks to the Flash's time travel shenanigans affecting different realities.

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In General

• Alternate Self:
  • Several across The Multiverse of the Arrowverse, including Earth-Prime, Earth-1, Earth-9, Earth-66, Earth-99, Earth-167, Earth-203. Also Burton's Batman exists on Earth-89 while Schumacher's Batman exists on Earth-97.
  • Keaton's Batman himself has at least three mutually exclusive future variants branching off from the Burton movies in different media, which means one can take this as at least four overall versions of the character (that is, movies only vs. movies and different expansions).
    • The comic miniseries Batman '89 is set some years after Batman Returns, in the 1990s, and introduces Robin and Two-Face. DC later declared this to exist in the same universe as a Superman '78 miniseries based on the Christopher Reeve movies, with the Earth being Earth-789, and it's implied this is where the Reeve and Keaton movies themselves are set, at least as far as DC Comics itself is concerned.
    • But earlier, the Arrowverse's TV version of Crisis on Infinite Earths designated the Burton movies as taking place on Earth-89, so Keaton's Batman is implied to exist there too. He is unseen, but an older version of the reporter Knox from the first Burton movie is seen, so this presumably takes place in 2019, when Crisis aired.
    • Then The Flash (2023) revisits Keaton as a much older Batman who now exists in the main DCEU timeline in the 2010s, after the Flash's time travel shenanigans inadvertently replaced its younger resident Batman, played by Ben Affleck, with him. Unlike the comics and the Arrowverse, the movie doesn't number different Earths or realities. And it doesn't really acknowledge the Arrowverse scheme of the multiverse, so its version of Keaton's Batman can be taken as a separate iteration from both the one in the Burton movies only and the one implied to exist on TV, let alone the one who was expanded upon in comics.
  • Similarly, Clooney's Batman himself was officially split off as his own thing (Earth-97) from Keaton's Batman (Earth-89) as far as the Arrowverse is concerned. This is despite their and Kilmer's actual movies being officially and quietly treated as one continuous continuity for decades, in turn despite the evident Soft Reboot of the Burton era. And in practice, the Arrowverse's numbering and multiverse scheme in general have had no bearing upon later non-Arrowverse media. So one can easily say there must be more than one version of Clooney's Batman too, like the one from the Schumacher movies only, and the one that must exist within the Arrowverse's multiverse. And the one that exists within a changed DCEU due to the Flash movie, in place of Affleck and Keaton. How this one relates to Kilmer's Batman in context of the Flash movie is left up in the air; he could be the same person, or again an alternate self to Kilmer's as well as Keaton's and Affleck's versions.
• Animal-Themed Superbeing: Bats are his motif.
• Badass Cape: Batman's cape does more than just make him look intimidating. The Tim Burton version can use his for gliding (the Batman from The Dark Knight Trilogy would emulate this) and the Joel Schumacher cape provides protection from fire and explosions.
• Big Damn Heroes: Every single time he smashes through a window involves a Big Damn Hero entrance. The classic example is the scene in the first movie where he drops in through a museum skylight to save Vicki Vale who was being menaced by the Joker.
• Broad Strokes: The Flash shows both versions of Bruce Wayne have been retconned into the DC Extended Universe after the Flash tampered with history.
• Crimefighting with Cash: Naturally, given he's the poster-boy for Badass Normal. Batman relies on protective body armor, gadgets small enough to fit on his utility belt, the Batmobile, the Batwing and the Batboat. Batman's inventory gets damaged across each movie, so he regularly upgrades it.
• Dark Is Not Evil: This Batman was one of the darkest incarnations of the character at the time of the film's initial release, both in the suit's color and his violent methods of dispatching criminals. He still works to bring justice to Gotham.
• Decomposite Character: When the films were still being made, Keaton, Kilmer and Clooney were playing the same character. Nowadays DC is essentially treating Burton's and Schumacher's Batmen as separate characters.
• Did Not Get the Girl: In each movie Batman gets a new love interest, but clearly doesn't get a happy future with them. Vicki Vale? Broke up with him prior to Returns because she couldn't handle his double-life. Selina Kyle? Her damaged mindset and obsession with vengeance got in the way. Chase Meridian? The fact he was dating someone else in Batman and Robin proved it didn't go so well. Julie Madison? He turns down her offer of marriage because of his double-life, and she was the only love interest who didn't find out about it (and she's killed by Poison Ivy in a deleted scene).
• Disabled in the Adaptation: When played by either Michael Keaton or Val Kilmer, Bruce wears glasses for seeing across short distances.
• Dressed All in Rubber: Just as the all-black coloring was a massive leap away from Batman's conventional look, so too was the decision to have him wear a suit made of sculpted rubber, though only the Kilmer and Clooney movies explicitly say it's rubber.
• Everyone Loves Blondes: All of his love interests are blondes. This includes Selina Kyle and Julie Madison, who are brunette in the comics.
• Ham and Deadpan Duo: Batman is the deadpan to his rogues' ham.
• Happily Adopted: Bruce openly acknowledges Alfred as his adoptive father, and despite the Snark-to-Snark Combat, it's clear that they love each other.
• I Am Your Opponent: "I'm Batman."
• In Spite of a Nail: This version of Batman ended up killing the Joker just like his counterparts on Earth-Prime, Earth-9, Earth-66 and Earth-99^note DCEU Batman has sworn to kill the Joker when the opportunity arises while also being willing to kill other criminals. However while the first three treated this as a reason to retire as Batman out of shame and the latter's decision to murder criminals was shown to have made him just as bad as his rogues' gallery. Both Burton's and Schumacher's versions of Batman had little guilt over killing their enemies though they tended to use it as a last resort.
• Leitmotif: Both iterations of Batman have their own themes.
  • Danny Elfman's theme for the Tim Burton films has a dark and mysterious opening, which shifts into a bombastic rush to illustrate Batman's status as the Dark Knight.
  • Elliot Goldenthal's theme for the Joel Schumacher films is also dark and ominous, but with more flourishes to emphasize that Batman is a rather glamorous and romantic action hero.
• Movie Superheroes Wear Black: After decades of comics and previous live-action portrayals showed Batman wearing grey spandex, this take on Batman goes with black body armor. The Dark Knight Trilogy would run with this, before the DC Extended Universe went back to wearing a grey bodyglove.
• Non-Powered Costumed Hero: Batman relies on guile and various gadgets to gain the upper hand on his enemies.
• Rage Helm: Starting with Tim Burton's movies, every film version of Batman's costume had intense eyebrows sculpted into the cowl. Future iterations of Batman would continue the trend up until The Batman, which went for a more makeshift design.
• Secret Identity Vocal Shift: Michael Keaton popularized this trope for the character with a raspy Batman voice to contrast with Bruce Wayne's. Kilmer's Batman voice leaned more on the deep end while Clooney's take more or less averted it.
• Stealth Expert: As usual for Batman, but mostly in the Tim Burton films. In Joel Schumacher's movies he tends to make the most spectacular entrances possible.
• Superheroes Stay Single: Batman has a new love interest with every film. It's taken to a ridiculous degree in Batman and Robin when he's replaced Chase Meridian with a new squeeze and the story gives this detail no focus whatsoever.
• Theme Music Power-Up: The minute you hear any version of Danny Elfman or Elliot Goldenthal's classic Batman themes, there's gonna be some kicked ass. No questions asked.
• Through the Eyes of Madness: Witnessing his parents' murder at a young age screwed him up pretty badly. When Bruce reminisces about his childhood, the killer is shown as a silhouetted figure surrounded by a mist, giving off a near-supernatural vibe.

Tim Burton's Batman

"Y'see, my life is really...complex."

Played by: Michael Keaton

Voiced by: Hiroyuki Watanabe (Japanese, home video dub), Kōichi Yamadera (Japanese, TV Asahi dub), Patrick Osmond (European French), Éric Gaudry (Canadian French), Nilton Valério (Brazilian Portuguese)

Film Appearances: Batman | Batman Returns

Other Appearances: Batman '89

"He's out there right now and I've gotta go to work."

The Bruce Wayne/Batman of Earth-89 is a reclusive billionaire who due to the murder of his parents decides to fight crime. His career shows him battling his parents' killer Jack Napier once he becomes the Joker, while a few years later he comes into conflict with the Penguin and strikes a tragic romance with Catwoman.

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• '90s Anti-Hero: Batman is no stranger to this trope, but unlike most other incarnations, Burton's Batman kills two mooks, making him a Type III Anti-Hero. As he debuted at the end of the 80s, this take on Batman helped define the trope for a decade's worth of cinematic anti-heroes, with darker heroes like The Crow (1994) and Spawn getting movies shortly after Batman made his mark.
• Actually, I Am Him: In the first movie, Vicki Vale corners a man at a swish party at Wayne Manor and asks whether he's seen elusive billionaire Bruce Wayne; he says he hasn't. Later, as she and Alex Knox are in one of Wayne's rooms, making fun of the statues, the man appears behind them and informs them that the statue they're currently laughing at is Japanese. How does he know? "Because I bought it in Japan...Oh, sorry. Bruce Wayne."
• Adaptational Curves: Inverted. He's significantly less muscular than most takes on Batman.
• Adaptational Villainy: While still the protagonist and nowhere near as big a threat as the villains he faces, this version of Batman is more of a Nominal Hero than his comicbook self was at the time.
  • In the first film: He waits until a pair of muggers attack an innocent family before going after them, hinting that he's just looking for an excuse to pick a fight. After rescuing Vicky from the Joker and his men, Batman takes her to the Batcave and instructs her to deliver information to the press before knocking her out and stealing her film, showing little concern for any trauma she'd likely sustained. After spending the majority of the film treating the Joker like a common criminal in spite of his growing body count, Batman only takes him seriously after realizing the Joker was the one who killed his parents.
  • In the second film: Batman shows absolutely no mercy towards any of the Penguin's henchmen, setting one on fire and planting a bomb on another.
• Adaptation Origin Connection: Bruce's parents are explicitly shown to have been killed by a criminal that would eventually become the Joker, when in canon it's always been a common mugger named Joe Chill (though said mugger does appear as an accomplice).
• Adaptation Personality Change: Keaton's take on Bruce Wayne is an eccentric, neurotic recluse, a far cry from the suave playboy of the comics. Also, his Batman is a lot quieter and more inclined to use lethal force.
• Bring It: Batman gives a non-verbal one to Bob - the Joker's chief henchman - in the first movie. Bob makes the wise decision to leg it. He also gives an even more subtle one to the Penguin when Batman openly brandishes a signal emitter in front of him.
• Cape Wings: Some hidden mechanism in Batman's cape allows him to turn it into a glider. As stated above, The Dark Knight Trilogy would duplicate and elaborate on this.
• Cloudcuckoolander: In the first film as Bruce Wayne. He's nowhere near as suave as he is in other adaptations, being quite shy around women and taking his bat-motif a little too seriously when he decides to sleep upside down.
• Collector of the Strange: Bruce Wayne's armory exhibits some fairly bizarre suits that you'd typically expect to be hidden in the Batcave. Weirdly enough, at least one of the suits looks like it could have belonged to Scarecrow. In Batman '89 he's fixated on owning a giant penny.
• Continuity Snarl: Earth-Prime and Earth-1's depictions of him and his world contradict each other. Crisis on Infinite Earths confirms that this Batman (or a successor) is still fighting crime decades later as of 2019. Otherwise, it is implied that the world shown, called Earth-89, is supposed to be Keaton's, due to Danny Elfman's music cues and the cameo of Alexander Knox. In The Flash, due to Barry's time travel, this Batman manifests in Barry's own world in the DCEU Batman's place, retired after bringing peace to Gotham City years ago and subsequently dying while fighting Kryptonian invaders in the early 2010s. It's implied his and Barry's world or timeline merged, but at no point is his source world called Earth-89, nor is there any Burtonesque visual continuity after the merge outside his Batman stuff.
• Cool Car: His Batmobile is one of the most well-known in Batman's history. It's sleek with fins shaped like bat-wings, a cabin that slides open, an exhaust shaft that spews flames, gatling guns, instant armor that can withstand a point-blank explosive and the ability to discard its excess mass for driving through narrow passes.
• The Cowl: The first iteration of Batman since Adam West popularised the "bright knight" phase. This take on Batman is emotionally crippled, stays out of the spotlight and deliberately kills people if they're enough of a threat.
• Create Your Own Villain: Downplayed. While it was during a confrontation at Ace Chemicals that Jack Napier took the fateful chemical dip that turned him into the Joker, he was already an evil monster and cold-blooded killer, and the one who killed his parents, beforehand, so Batman's role in his creation is limited.
  "I made you? You made me first."
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Do not engage this guy in a one-on-one battle. A trained swordsman was knocked out with one punch and a circus strongman was tossed overhead to his death.
• Dating Catwoman: With the Trope Namer herself in Returns. They don't get very far, though Batman '89 hints that she's willing to give the relationship another try.
• Deadpan Snarker: Not the most outgoing guy, but he gets in a good zinger or two.
  • When he first meets Knox and Vicki.
  Knox: (referring to a samurai-style armor) Where did this come from?
  Vicki: I have no idea.
  Bruce: It's Japanese.
  Knox: And how do you know?
  Bruce: (Beat) Because I bought it in Japan.
  • "Alfred, why don't you marry her?"
  • Later when he lets Drake Winston into the Batcave.
  "I'm gonna chain you up in here for the next 20 years. But at least the food will be good."
• Delicious Distraction: When Bruce is performing a background check on the Penguin, Alfred prepares Bruce's dinner. Bruce momentarily loses his train of thought because the "soup" Alfred prepared for him was served cold. Alfred points out that it's vichyssoise, so it's meant to be served cold. Satisfied with the explanation, Bruce laps up some more and gets back to work.
• The Dreaded: His monstrous persona is a success at building a fearsome reputation.
  Knox: Every punk in this town is scared stiff. They say he can't be killed. They say he drinks blood...
• Establishing Character Moment: In the first film, he is fumbling about during a classy party, showing his eccentricity. The fact that he also pretends not to know who Bruce Wayne is to Vicki Vale, only to introduce himself to her and Alexander Knox in a more low-key fashion, also indicates his willingness to and ease at keeping a low profile and slipping into the background when it suits him.
• Everyone Has Standards: He may have a disregard for the lives and well-being of common criminals (especially clown-themed ones), but he's quick to feel guilty about inflicting pain on a woman, regardless of how violent she is.
• Exactly What I Aimed At: Batman launches a grapnel at a foe who has Selina Kyle at stungun-point. The clown taunts him for missing, just before Batman pulls the grapnel back, tearing out a chunk of the wall behind the two which smacks the clown in the head and instantly knocks him out.
• Good Is Not Nice: Despite his many issues and violent solutions to problems, he is unambiguously in the right.
  • The earliest example is the muggers at the beginning. One isn't pleased that his buddy turned a gun on the kid. Guess which one gets put through a door.
  • He kills henchmen left and right, sends Vicki mixed signals about what's going to become of their relationship and overall seems to be more obsessed with enforcing the law and getting vengeance on The Joker than actually doing good.
  • With Vicki, though, it's not so much him being a dick, it's that he himself is unsure exactly where their relationship might go, or if it has a future at all, and he does in the end try to tell her the truth about him after deciding they just might have a chance.
• Grave-Marking Scene: Bruce honors the night his parents were murdered by placing roses at the site of their death every year. Vicki Vale witnesses this and with Knox's assistance is able to figure out his double life.
• Great Detective: Overlaps with Science Hero. Batman does some detective work and figures out how Joker is using Smylex to poison Gotham's citizens using retail products. He then leaks his findings to the media with the help of Vicki Vale and ends up throwing a wrench in Joker's plans.
• Grenade Tag: In one of the most well-known scenes in Returns, Batman swipes a bundle of dynamite from a killer clown. He's soon accosted by a strongman that can take a punch, so Batman stuffs the dynamite down the strongman's pants. Cue a malicious smile and a Disney Villain Death.
• Heroic BSoD:
  • After seeing the Joker make his public debut. The thought that the Joker could survive falling into a vat of chemical waste understandably baffles him.
  • When the Joker delivers his "dance with the Devil" line, Bruce is stunned that he would hear such a specific choice of words twice in his lifetime.
  • On a humorous note, Catwoman plays a Wounded Gazelle Gambit on him right after she provoked him into fighting her. Even Batman wasn't prepared for an opponent who could make him feel guilty.
• Hero with Bad Publicity: In Returns, Penguin sets things up to turn Batman into one, first by tricking the public into thinking Batman pushed the Ice Princess to her death, and then by hijacking the Batmobile and going on a hit-and-run rampage. The sight of the Bat-signal at the very end of the film implies that at least Commissioner Gordon hasn't given up on him.
• "Hey, You!" Haymaker: Delivers one to the Joker, throwing the clown's Pre-Mortem One-Liner back in his face, alongside a fist that's carrying decades of pain and fury.
• High-Altitude Interrogation: Does this to a Bit Part Bad Guy at the beginning of the first film. Interestingly for a trope that's generally used as a death threat, just before Batman holds the guy over the edge of the building, he tells the mook "I'm not going to kill you."
  Batman: I want you to do me a favor. I want you to tell all your friends about me.
  Nic: What are you?!
  Batman: I'm Batman.
• Honest Corporate Executive: As Bruce Wayne. Max Shreck, the epitome of the Corrupt Corporate Executive, derides him as a "trust fund goody-goody".
• Horrifying Hero: It's Batman. The only reason regular people warm up to him is because his enemies are even more horrifying.
• I Just Want to Be Normal: At the end of Batman '89, Bruce has a dream where he's married to Selina with two children and an adopted third, with his parents still being alive.
• Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy: His Batwing doesn't score a single hit on the Joker despite having targeting systems and the Joker standing completely still.
• Improvised Armor: When the Joker drops by Vicki's apartment, Bruce hides a small silver tea tray inside his jacket as body armor against the Joker's gun.
• Irisless Eye Mask Of Mystery: In Batman '89 his eyes appear as white slits when he's wearing the cowl, eschewing the explanation that Batman's cowl has lenses as some fans and even comic book creators tend to envision.
• Ironic Echo/Pre-Asskicking One-Liner: In the first film right before his final fight with the Joker.
  "Excuse me. Ever dance with the Devil in the pale moonlight?" ::PUNCH::
• It's Not You, It's My Enemies: Tim Burton took a painfully realistic look on this trope, though technically only one relationship ended this way:
  • In Batman (1989), Bruce had originally viewed this as his issue with Vicki, until he told her. This was broken up by The Joker coming in. Vicki ended up dumping him because she couldn't handle it. This ends up haunting him for the rest of the series.
  • In Batman Returns, his issue had been the way he ended with Vicki, leading him to try to get over it with Selina Kyle. Once again, he is the one dumped, as Selina is Ax-Crazy by the end of the movie and attempts murder-suicide with her ex-boss Shreck.
  Catwoman: Bruce...I would love to live with you in your castle...forever just like in a fairy tale... (scratches Bruce's face) I just couldn't live with myself, so don't pretend this is a happy ending!
• It's Personal: The first movie adds this to the relationship between Batman and the Joker; it is revealed that the Joker was the man responsible for murdering Bruce Wayne's parents.
• Let's Get Dangerous!: When Bruce, challenging the Joker in Vicki's apartment, picks up a poker and bellows, "You wanna get nuts?! Come on! Let's get nuts!".
• Mask of Confidence: Bruce Wayne typically speaks with a softer, less confident tone of voice as opposed to Batman's cold and unfeeling voice. He's also far more present in Gotham as Batman than as Bruce Wayne.
• The Masquerade Will Kill Your Dating Life: Bruce and Vicki tried to form a relationship, but she eventually called it quits in-between films. When Bruce and Selina find out they're Batman and Catwoman, they're both torn on what to do next, though neither savors the idea of staying enemies.
• Mistaken for Superpowered: "They say he can't be killed. They say he drinks blood..."
• Muscles Are Meaningless: He's considerably skinnier than the comics and most other portrayals but is still very strong and physically capable, able to easily lift grown men and knock people out with single blows.
• Never Bring A Knife To A Fistfight: Both the Joker and the Penguin have henchmen who specialize in using bladed weapons. Batman either oneshots them or humors them before one-shotting them.
• No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Dishes a pretty brutal one to the Joker in the final climax, complete with Punch! Punch! Punch! Uh Oh... from the latter. However, Joker manages to escape further wrath by using his own Playing Possum technique against him (which Batman had used only two minutes ago to evade a similarly-nasty beatdown from one of his goons).
• An Odd Place to Sleep: Bruce is briefly shown sleeping hanging upside down from his rack. This is never mentioned again.
• One-Man Army: He kicks the Red Triangle Gang's collective asses almost single-handedly three times in the second film. When he storms the Penguin's lair in the climax, the few remaining performers aren't interested in another rematch and decide Screw This, I'm Outta Here. Old age hasn't slowed him down, as he fights off several armed guards while working with the Flash.
• The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything: Michael Keaton's Bruce Wayne is never shown doing any work not related to being Batman, despite inheriting an entire company. The closest we get to see of him working is when he visits Max Shreck's office and listens to the tail-end of the tycoon's pitch, but this quickly segues into an argument regarding the Penguin's motives. Justified in a sense, as Bruce considers being Batman to be his "work".
• Properly Paranoid: Upon gaining the city's attention and playing the part of the kindly outcast, Batman suspects that the Penguin is up to something despite having very little to work with at the time.
  "I think he knows who his parents are. There's something else."
• Psychotic Smirk: Two examples in 1989 - the first when he says "I'm Batman" to the initial mook, with the second being when Jack Napier comments "Nice outfit." Then, there's Returns when he straps a bomb he took from a mook earlier onto a circus strongman.
• Quirky Curls: One of the more eccentric takes on Bruce Wayne, who also happens to be the only one so far with curly hair.
• Right Behind Me: At the party in the first movie. In the room with the armor. Really, Batman specializes in random appearances and disappearances when someone is talking.
• Science Hero: When Joker terrorizes Gotham using his Smylex chemical, Batman figures out the exact combination of retail products NOT to use so that people don't die from Smylex poisoning. This overlaps with hiss different gadgets and qualifies him for this trope.
• Secret-Identity Identity: His Bruce Wayne persona comes across as a mask that isn't properly fitted, being eccentric and elusive as if he doesn't know how to act human. As Batman, he's more confident and natural talking to criminals and regular citizens.
• Smoke Out: Does it after Jack/Joker falls into the vat. He combines it with the Bat-line to make it look like he's flying away.
• Socially Awkward Hero: In his Bruce Wayne persona, he is noticeably awkward and unsure how to act in social situations, contrasting with the charismatic Millionaire Playboy from the comics, although this IS Depending on the Writer. During his date with Vicki in the first film, he effectively has to go get Alfred to help him chat her up.
• Something Only They Would Say:
  • He realizes that the Joker is the same man who murdered his parents when he hears the latter say "Ever danced with the Devil by the pale moonlight?".
  • When Batman and Catwoman have an exchange over the sight of mistletoe, they take each other's words to heart and repeat them in their civilian guises, causing both to go into shock.
• Spare a Messenger: Two muggers are counting their loot on a rooftop. Batman appears and kicks one of them through a door. He takes the other one to the edge of the roof, holds him over the long drop below and tells him not to keep their confrontation a secret.
• Star-Crossed Lovers: With Selina/Catwoman in Returns. It's their different psyches and issues that keep them apart. Catwoman would return alive and well in Batman '89, though by the end of that series it's unlikely they'll ever pick up where they left off.
• Stealth Hi/Bye:
  • Does the Bye and Hi a few seconds apart while facing Jack Napier (before he became the Joker).
  • Bruce manages to sneak out of Vicki Vale's apartment moments after she'd witnessed him being shot by the Joker.
• Strolling Through the Chaos: There's a scene where the Joker's thugs Tommy-gun rival mobsters on the steps of the courthouse. Naturally, everyone hits the deck except Bruce, who's so busy staring at the Joker he doesn't even notice when a bullet clips his shoulder.
• Super Window Jump: Done in the first film to confront The Joker who has taken over the art museum and is about to do something to Vicki Vale.
• Talk to the Fist: Both the verbal and non-verbal kind. The first being when he fights a guy with a sword who after his pre-fight flourish, kicks him in the gut.
  • After that, The Joker, in a joke, pulls off a You Wouldn't Hit a Guy with Glasses prank while cornered. Batman punches him anyway.
  • When the Penguin starts screaming after Batman removed the device which Penguin was able to control the Batmobile, he punched at the screen Penguin hijacked through.
• Technically a Smile: Hoo boy. Michael Keaton-as-Batman gives some of the most joyless, hostile smiles you'll see from Bats.
• Thou Shalt Not Kill: Played straight at first, but subverted once he learns that The Joker killed his parents. He's generally more likely to kill people who look like circus folk.
• Took a Level in Kindness: By Batman '89 he's softened up considerably. Namely, he tries to bring in Two-Face without killing him.
• Trademark Favorite Food: Soup seems to be this for him. He has some on his date with Vicki and is surprised by the sudden cold temperature when Alfred prepares him some vichyssoise, which he apparently enjoys once he realizes it's meant to be served cold.
• Trick Dialogue: In the first film, Bruce mouths "I'm Batman. I'm Batman" with a view to confessing to Vicki Vale, and an almost Ironic Echo of his first line of the movie, spoken to menace a Gotham thug.
• Un-Confession: Bruce Wayne tries to tell Vicki Vale that he's Batman, but he's interrupted by the arrival of the Joker.
• Where Does He Get All Those Wonderful Toys?: Batman is the Trope Namer.
• Worf Had the Flu: Because Batman was hurt after his plane was shot down, he was trudging along as he followed Joker and Vicki up the long flight of stairs. He was off his game for most of the climax, especially in his fight against the Giant Mook, who gave him quite a beating after countering one of his intimidation moves.
• Wouldn't Hit a Girl: Subverted on a few occasions.
  • After bringing Vicki Vale to the Batcave and giving her intel on how to thwart the Joker, Batman seemingly cold-cocks her and dumps Vicki at her place, making sure to take her film so she can't out him. From the look of things he didn't actually hurt Vicki in doing so, just hit a pressure point that would cause her to instantly black out. The comic adaptation shows him using a knock out gas pellet.
  • When he targets the Poodle Lady on his Batarang. Her poodle catches it before it hits her and they both remove themselves from the fray.
  • Catwoman uses this trope against him to get the drop on him in their first fight, and Batman burns her arm with a chemical pellet. He quickly adapts and tells her to "eat floor" by their second encounter.
• You Killed My Father: Bruce Wayne realizes the Joker murdered his parents after hearing his Pre-Mortem One-Liner a second time. He swears to avenge them by beating the Joker to death. When the Joker blames Batman for his existence, Batman retorts that the Joker did the same thing when he murdered Thomas and Martha Wayne.

Joel Schumacher's Batman

"I see without seeing. To me, darkness is as clear as daylight. What am I?"

"Vengeance isn't power. Anyone can take a life. But to give life? That's true power."

Played by: Val Kilmer (Batman Forever) | George Clooney (Batman & Robin)

Voiced by: Naoto Takenaka (Japanese), Robert Guilmard [Kilmer], Patrick Noérie [Clooney] (European French), Éric Gaudry [Kilmer], Daniel Picard [Clooney] (Canadian French), Marco Antônio Costa [Kilmer], Bira Castro [Clooney] (Brazilian Portuguese)

Appearances: Batman Forever | Batman & Robin

"You see, I'm both Bruce Wayne and Batman. Not because I have to be. Now... because I choose to be."

After fighting crime for several years as Batman, the Bruce Wayne of Earth-97 finds himself developing a friendship with circus performer Dick Grayson after his family was murdered by Two-Face. Dick becomes his crime fighting partner Robin and together they defeat Two-Face and the Riddler, and a few years later this duo is joined by Batgirl who helps them fight Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy.

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• 10-Minute Retirement: Batman Forever shows Bruce attempting to give up on being Batman in order to have a normal life with Chase, realizing the psychiatrist wants him over his crimefighter persona. Too bad it's short-lived after Two-Face and Riddler raid Wayne Manor with their knowledge of his secret. That and moments before, he relived the pain of his parents' death while trying to tell Chase his secret, reminding himself why he became Batman to begin with. By the end of the film, while he may still desire for a normal life, he realizes he can't give up being Batman either.
• Aborted Arc: Julie Madison - Bruce's steady girlfriend in Batman and Robin - was originally scripted to have a more prominent role where Poison Ivy actually killed her and motivated Bruce for revenge. This was cut by the time of filming, but the movie clearly still has elements of this in the screenplay and Julie abruptly vanishes from the film in the third act without even so much as a reference as to where she is.
• Adaptation Dye-Job: While Bruce is almost always portrayed with black hair in comics and other media, Val Kilmer's version keeps his actor's natural blonde color.
• Affectionate Nickname: Gossip Gerty would call Bruce "Brucie" in Batman Forever and Batman & Robin.
• Always Need What You Gave Up: Almost immediately after Bruce Wayne foregoes his Batman identity, Two-Face and The Riddler invade Wayne Manor, nearly kill Bruce, kidnap Chase Meridian, and destroy the Batcave, promptly forcing him back into action to set things right.
• The Anti-Nihilist: As stated by Alfred in Batman & Robin.
  Alfred: Death and chance stole your parents, but rather than become a victim, you've done everything in your power to control the Fates. For what is Batman if not an effort to master the chaos that sweeps our world? An attempt to control death itself.
• Baritone of Strength: While the live action Batmen have typically sported low pitched voices to go with the character's status as a strong fighter, Val Kilmer's version is particularly notable on account of the actor's smooth voice.
• Bat Deduction: How he manages to figure the Riddler's true identity. He goes from several seemingly unrelated riddles to picking out the numbers among them, reinterpreting them as letters, forming the word "Mr. E" (as in "mystery"), then goes to the synonym "enigma", which sounds just like "Edward Nygma".
• Benevolent Boss: In Batman Forever Bruce Wayne is shown as being a little less dotty and reclusive. In the wake of Stickley's death, he personally canvasses the scene and insists on full insurance coverage for Stickley's surviving family even though their company policy normally wouldn't cover such a thing.
• Big Brother Instinct: Develops one towards Dick starting in Forever.
• Big Brother Mentor: Becomes one to Dick starting in Forever.
• Blue Is Heroic: George Clooney's batsuit is a more vibrant shade of blue.
• Broken Ace: Bruce Wayne is this. Everyone wants to be with him and Ed Nygma wants to be him. Deep down, he is an emotional train wreck.
• Bruce Wayne Held Hostage: In Forever,Two-Face holds an entire circus hostage with the (fairly reasonable) logic that, since the audience is filled with the richest and most notable citizens of Gotham, one of them must surely either know Batman or be Batman—and sure enough, Bruce is watching the performance. He immediately stands up and tries to give himself up, but no one can hear him in the panic.
  Two-Face: Surely one of you knows who Batman is. Hell, odds are one of you pasty-faced twits is Batman!
• Canon Discontinuity: Joel Schumacher's Batman has since been retconned out of existence, at least as far as later media is concerned, with Batman '89 replacing Batman Forever with a completely new storyline, and the DC Extended Universe bringing back Michael Keaton as Batman with Word of God dictating that the last two films will be ignored. This doesn't stop Clooney's Bruce from showing up at the tail end of The Flash, however.
• Can't Stay Normal: Bruce seriously considers hanging up the cape after planning to commit to a relationship with Chase and to discourage Dick from emulating him. Unfortunately it's far too late as Riddler and Two-Face figure out his true identity, attack his home and take Chase hostage. After donning the batsuit once more, Batman concludes that this is who he is, and he loves it.
  Batman: (to a defeated Riddler) Poor Edward... I had to save them both. You see, I'm both Bruce Wayne and Batman. Not because I have to be. Now... because I choose to be.
• Characterization Marches On: Both Batman and Bruce Wayne become less reclusive, possibly as a way for the former to rebuild his image after being framed by the Penguin, while the latter is coming to terms with his issues.
• Cloak of Defense: During one of his battles with Two-Face, Batman uses his cape to shield himself from an explosion caused by the villain.
• Control Freak: Dick accuses Bruce of being one after finding out that Batman put an override command in his Redbird motorcycle. When Poison Ivy starts seducing Robin, the rift gets even worse as Bruce tries to protect Dick from a suspicious stranger. When Bruce asks Alfred if Dick is right about his micro-managing, Alfred bluntly says yes - but that it's understandable considering his childhood trauma made him desperate for control.
• Crazy-Prepared: To the point where he has a Bat Credit Card that lasts forever, as shown in Batman & Robin.
  "Never leave the cave without it!"
• Create Your Own Villain: He rejects Edward Nygma's invention on the grounds that it "raised too many questions". This is all it took to turn him into the Riddler.
• Deadpan Snarker: A big change from the brooding and reclusive Batman from the first two films. This Batman often makes wry or exasperated wisecracks over the situations he keeps finding himself in, whether they be related to crimefighting or romance. This is especially true of Clooney's portrayal.
• Dull Surprise: Val Kilmer's incarnation is this deliberately (although mostly explained in deleted scenes). He's so detached from reality due to his trauma, and unsure of how real people emote, that a lot of his dialogue is stilted and awkward.
• Establishing Character Moment: Both Batman's and Bruce Wayne's first scenes establish the new depths to him not seen in the previous films. In the opening scene, Batman saves a mook from going down an elevator shaft, and Bruce's first scene is not him holed up in the Manor but actively involved in the daily operations at Wayne Enterprises.
• Fighter, Mage, Thief:
  • In Forever Batman's the Fighter to Robin's Thief and Alfred's Mage, being the most combat-savvy.
  • In Batman and Robin he's the Mage to Robin's Fighter and Batgirl's Thief, being the oldest and wisest of the three after Alfred is taken out of commission.
• Honest Corporate Executive: As Bruce Wayne. In Forever, he shows interest in Nygma's research, but refuses to commit without a closer look because what he's already heard about manipulating people's minds "just raises too many questions". In Batman & Robin, he says he cut Dr. Woodrue's funding due to a "clash of ideologies" and turns down Pamela Isley's proposal because it would cause all of humankind to die of starvation and cold though he notes her intentions are noble.
• Hotter and Sexier: The camera gets some very intimate shots of his bat-buns and bat-crotch while he suits up.
• Idiot Ball: It never occurs to Bruce to update the Batcave's security after Dick finds his way in. Thus, the Riddler finds the entrance and enters with no difficulty. For that matter, he enters a machine that can read his mind in front of a crowd of people who can watch it on a screen. Through this, the villains discover that he's Batman.
• "I Know You're in There Somewhere" Fight: After thwarting Mr Freeze, Batman reasons with him that he could redeem himself by giving Batman the cure to Macgregor Syndrome Stage 1. After Fries is reminded of his Hippocratic oath and reassured that he'll be able to look after his wife while serving in Arkham Asylum, he performs a Heel–Face Turn.
• Immune to Mind Control: While initially susceptible to her influence, Batman wills himself immune to Ivy's pheromone dust by recognizing and anticipating the dust's effects.
• Lantern Jaw of Justice: George Clooney has the most impressive chin out of the three Batman actors in this franchise.
• Moment Killer: He does this several times to Robin and Poison Ivy. When Robin is gazing mindlessly at her, Batman grabs him by the arm and drags him away to chase Mr. Freeze. Later at Freeze's hideout, he interrupts Ivy's attempts to kiss Robin twice, the first being an accident but the second time intentional. After the second time, Robin thinks he is just jealous that Ivy loves him instead of Batman and fights him to protect her, which results in Ivy escaping.
• Mr. Exposition: Due to completing his character arc by the end of Forever, Bruce's role in Batman & Robin amounts to little more than fighting bad guys and reading from said bad guy's files.
• My Greatest Failure: It's hinted that he sees Two-Face as this, as his inability to prevent Dent's disfiguring and subsequent descent into madness led directly to not only Harvey's Face–Heel Turn, but the death of Robin's family, along with many others.
• Never Be a Hero: Bruce tries to discourage Dick from trying to be his partner, as he only became Batman to avenge his parents and only continued fighting crime to fill the void.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Getting into a fight with Robin because of Poison Ivy's pheromones allowed her, Mr. Freeze, and Bane to get away.
• Out of the Inferno: Two-Face and his henchmen try to immolate Batman. He just emerges from the flames completely unharmed.
  Two-Face: WHY CAN'T YOU JUST DIE?!
• Perpetual Smiler: When Clooney played him in Batman & Robin. Keep in mind he's dealing with an unruly sidekick, a homewrecking supervillain and his beloved manservant is seriously ill.
• Progressively Prettier: Michael Keaton is certainly an attractive man, but not conventionally so. Val Kilmer and George Clooney are a Pretty Boy and Tall, Dark, and Handsome respectively.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: Bruce is the blue to Dick Grayson's red. He's more cautious when going into battle and is able to realise Poison Ivy's pheremone dust is affecting the tow of them while Dick fully succumbs to it. Not only is this reflected in their costumes, but marketing emphasised this quite heavily through color-coding merchandise (with Riddler and Poison Ivy being green and Two-Face and Batgirl being purple).
• Sharp-Dressed Man: As Bruce Wayne in the Schumacher films, he wears some gorgeous (if dated) suits. While he dresses reasonably formally in the Burton films, he looks more like a history professor than a stylish gentleman.
• Sky Surfing: Batman and Robin engage in this while chasing Mr Freeze.
• The Spock: Batman's the Superego to Robin's Id and Batgirl's Ego.
• Stepford Smiler: Since George Clooney has a constant smile on his face, the clearest interpretation is that Batman's gone from wallowing in his angst to masking it from even his closest allies. Most notably, when he has what was potentially his last ever conversation with Alfred, Bruce's eyes were starting to fill with tears despite giving his beloved valet a reassuring grin.
• Super Window Jump: In Forever, Batman does this through a ceiling window to confront Two-Face after he crashes Edward's party.
  Edward: (to Two-Face) Your entrance was good, his was better.
• Technician Versus Performer: The Technician to Robin's Performer. Batman is more reliant on technology and looks before he leaps, while as a former acrobat Robin is a natural thrill-seeker.
• Technological Pacifist: In Forever, he turns down Nygma's invention because the idea of mental manipulation raises "too many questions." In Batman & Robin, he also admits he cut Dr. Woodrue's funding due to a "clash of ideologies," outright describing him as a lunatic.
• Thou Shalt Not Kill: He grows out of it by Forever and tells Dick that he will realize one day that killing Two-Face won't fulfill him. Later, he does kill Two-Face in-order to stop him when there is no other options. In Batman and Robin he manages to save the day without killing anyone.
• Took a Level in Badass: Inverted in Batman and Robin, where Batman tries a flying kick on Mr Freeze and ends up on his ass. Later on he's overpowered by Poison Ivy's mutant plants. While his enemies are a step above the usual criminals he's used to taking on, you'd still expect Batman of all people to have the experience and caution needed to avoid losing ground against an opponent.
• Ungrateful Bastard: At least that's what Dick thinks in Forever and accuses him of, after he (Dick) risks his life to save Batman after Two-Face tries to kill him. He's wrong.
• Vague Age: Batman is more seasoned in these sequels than he was in the first two Tim Burton films - with the emphasis on him playing a father figure/mentor to Dick Grayson - yet the actors playing him get progressively younger (Keaton was born in 1951, Kilmer in 1959 and Clooney in 1961).
• Vengeance Feels Empty: Referenced when he tries to persuade Dick not to kill Two-Face in Forever:
  Bruce: So, you're willing to take a life.
  Dick: Long as it's Two-Face.
  Bruce: Then it will happen this way: You make the kill. But your pain doesn't die with Harvey, it grows. So you run out into the night to find another face, and another, and another. Until one terrible morning you wake up and realize that revenge has become your whole life. And you won't know why.
  Dick: You can't understand. Your family wasn't killed by a maniac.
  Bruce: Yes, they were. We're the same.
• Video Phone: Bruce has one in his wristwatch.

Robin

Dick Grayson

Richard "Dick" Grayson

"Bruce. whenever you go out at night, I'll be watching. And wherever Batman goes, I'm gonna be right beside him. I mean, how you gonna stop me?"

^{New Outfit} "Look, I want a Robin Signal in the sky, alright? I'm tired of living in your shadow. All that ends right now."

Played by: Chris O'Donnell

Voiced by: Pierre Tessier (European French), Stephan Cloutier [Forever], Gilbert Lachance [& Robin] (Canadian French)

Appearances: Batman Forever | Batman & Robin

"All I can think about every second of the day is getting Two-Face. He took my whole life. And when I was out there tonight, I imagined it was him that I was fighting, even when I was fighting you. And all the pain went away. Do you understand?"

A young acrobat who is orphaned after his parents and brother are murdered by Two-Face, he is taken in by Bruce on Earth-97. Learning Bruce's Secret Identity fuels his desire for vengeance against Two-Face, and though Bruce is hesitant, he eventually takes Dick on as his partner, Robin.

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• Adaptation Distillation: The integration of Robin merged together his younger, more carefree days with his older incarnation (before he became Nightwing) as a Deadpan Snarker foil to Batman's Unfunny. See also Composite Character.
• Adaptation Origin Connection: This happens by way of Composite Character, as the Dick Grayson version of Robin sees his circus acrobat parents killed by Two-Face instead of Tony Zucco, much in the same manner in which the first movie made Jack Napier (a.k.a. the Joker) the murderer of Bruce's parents rather than Joe Chill. This makes him a bit like Jason Todd in the Post-Crisis comics, whose gangster father was murdered by Two-Face.
• Age Lift: Introduced as a college-aged young man, whereas his comicbook counterpart was introduced as a pre-teen. The characters don't treat him as if he's an adult, though.
• Almost Kiss: At Freeze's hideout he almost kisses Poison Ivy twice after she seduces him, only for Batman to interrupt them both times. Averted when he confronts Poison Ivy in her lair. With the two of them alone, they finally share a passionate kiss.
• Alternate Self: Has one on Earth-9, Earth-66, Earth-167, Earth-203 and an undesignated Earth.
• And This Is for...: When Robin confronts Two-Face. "That was for my mother!" (punch) "My father!" (punch) "My brother!" (punch) "And this is for me!" ("headbutt")
• Animal-Themed Superbeing: It's stated here that the name "Robin" comes from the songbird, going back to a moment of heroism in Dick's past. At first it was just an Animal Motif as he owned a helmet with a stylized robin on it, but eventually Dick takes the name on as his official moniker.
• Awesome, but Impractical: Robin's suits are made from sculpted rubber and include capes to better fit with Batman's design, yet they don't allow him to use his acrobatic skills to the fullest.
• Badass Biker: As seen in Forever and Batman & Robin. Robin was confident that he could make a jump while chasing Mr Freeze, but Batman disabled his bike out of concern for his safety.
• Badass in Distress:
  • In Forever after being taken captive by Two-Face.
  • Again in Batman & Robin when he is frozen by Mr. Freeze and later almost drowned by Poison Ivy.
• Badass Normal: Earns his stripes well before he becomes Robin.
• Bad Date: Essentially how his final confrontation with Poison Ivy goes. Ivy spends a majority of the film seducing Robin, tricking him into believing she loves him and is willing to give up her villainous ways and "turn over a new leaf" just to be with him, all so she can drive a wedge between him and Batman and eventually kill him with a Kiss of Death. But each time they get close to kissing they are interrupted by Batman or some other outside force, to their mutual frustration. Robin is eventually lured by Ivy to her lair under the pretense of her love for him and the two meet in the center of her lair, isolated from anymore interruptions like Batman and essentially allowing them to finally have a proper date together. As the two cuddle together on Ivy's throne and flirt with each other while declaring their love for each other, Robin gets serious and tries to pry information from Ivy to see if she can really be trusted while she continues to try to seduce him and get him to kiss her. Eventually, after Robin ignores all her attempts to flirt with him and offers of sexual favors, Ivy agrees to share what she and Freeze have planned together with him, and she convinces him to stay and share one quick kiss with her "for luck". Immediately after they share a passionate kiss though, Ivy reveals her true colors to Robin, condemning him to death in mock sadness while leaning back and shooting him a victorious smirk. However, Robin reveals that he was actually playing Ivy himself and protected himself with rubber lips until he could find out if she really loved him or not, and having just failed her Secret Test of Character, Robin smugly rubs this fact in her face by copying her mock sad voice. The two of them revealing their lies and treachery to each other essentially kills the romantic mood between the two "would-be-lovers", and Ivy shoots a dirty glare at Robin in humiliation for outsmarting her, beating her at her own game of seduction and stealing a kiss from her. Suddenly though, Ivy catches Robin by surprise by lunging at him and shoving him away from her, with him rolling backwards unable to catch himself and splashing into her lily pond, where the plants in it sense Ivy's anger towards him and attempt to drown him. As Robin struggles for air, Ivy jumps from her throne and begins to strut away, turning to glance at him one last time and ends their "date" by mockingly waving him goodbye while shouting a taunting "See ya!" to him, just to rub it in that she was "breaking up" with him.
• Beat Them at Their Own Game: Poison Ivy seduces him and tricks him into thinking she loves him to lure him to his death and drive him apart from Batman. He however manages to outsmart her, confronting her in her lair and pretending to still be blindly in love. He tricks her into revealing her plan and tests her love by sharing a kiss with her. He romantically manipulated her by pretending to love her like she pretended to love him and managed to steal a kiss from her. Though downplayed by Ivy ultimately getting the last laugh in their "relationship" by shoving him into her pond to drown him and then "breaking up with him", she is still beaten shortly afterwards and he escapes with the info.
• Circus Brat: Dick was the youngest member of The Flying Graysons.
• Composite Character: His origin is actually a composite of two comic-book Robins; in the comics, Two-Face killed Jason Todd's parents, and that element (along with Jason's desire for revenge) were imported into Chris O'Donnell's Dick Grayson character. Dick also inherited the Post-Crisis Jason Todd's recklessness and brash attitude in Batman & Robin and he twice puts himself at the mercy of Batman's rogues similar to the plot of A Death in the Family. In retrospect, his motorcycle outfit with a red helmet also makes him resemble Jason's version of the Red Hood.
• Crazy-Prepared: He takes after Batman in this regard. He might have been in love with Poison Ivy but he wore rubber lips for protection, just in case Batman was right about her poison kiss.
• Dartboard of Hate: In a deleted scene in Batman Forever, Dick is punching a picture of Two-Face during his training sessions.
• Dating Catwoman: At least he thinks so. He falls in love with Poison Ivy and believes she loves him too, and thinks Batman is jealous of the two of them. After finding out Ivy is a villain, he still has feelings for her and believes she loves him enough to switch sides so the two of them can be together. Subverted as Ivy has no real feelings for him, and only seduces Robin into kissing her so she can kill him. They officially "break up" after sharing a kiss in her lair though. Robin wised up and wore rubber lips to be sure Ivy really did love him, and Ivy, angry after discovering Robin's betrayal of her trust, shoved him into her pond to drown him.
• Didn't Think This Through: He manages to protect himself from Poison Ivy's kiss by wearing rubber lips to cancel her poison. But after Ivy taunts Robin, he tries to get back at her by pulling off the rubber lips and revealing they made him immune to her poison instead of taking advantage of the situation by leaving immediately or tackling Ivy while she's in shock over his survival and arrest her. He might have humiliated Ivy, but because he was still sitting right next to her with no further protection she leaps forward, catching him off-guard, and shoves him into the lily pond where her plants almost drown him.
• Distracted by the Sexy: He is easily seduced and distracted by Poison Ivy several times. He stares at her when he should be chasing after Freeze until Batman drags him out and is easily seduced by her at Freeze's hideout twice despite now knowing she's a villain instead of trying to help Batman. He does eventually get over this by the time he meets her in her lair, ignoring her flirting long enough to ask her what her plan is, though he still lets Ivy pull him back and convince him to share a kiss with her, though that was more his own choice.
• Domino Mask: Dick starts wearing one even before he officially becomes Robin. Given he'd earlier been spotted driving the Batmobile completely unmasked, he's obviously not that concerned with hiding his identity as thoroughly as Batman does.
• Fighter, Mage, Thief:
  • In Batman Forever Robin's the Thief to Batman's Fighter and Alfred's Mage, being not quite as adept in combat as Batman is but still being wily enough to break into the Batcave.
  • In Batman and Robin he's become the Fighter to Batman's Mage and Batgirl's Thief, as his confidence has clouded his judgement.
• Fourth-Date Marriage: Played with between him and Poison Ivy. He quickly falls in love with Ivy shortly after meeting her, and when he finally confronts her in her lair, just a few days after first meeting her and their third meeting overall, he tells her that he "wants them to be together," implying that despite their limited time together, their short conversations, and not even knowing each other’s real names he still loves Ivy enough to ask her to marry him. This is all somewhat justified though by Ivy using her pheromone dust on him to turn his crush on her into blind devoted love. Subverted as Robin never actually asks Ivy to marry him, especially after he learns her love was a lie.
• Green-Eyed Monster: Robin's character arc across Batman and Robin. His Darker and Edgier wardrobe is one indicator, but the real kicker is that his first line in the movie is when he says "I want a car!" like a petulant teenager.
• Hero Ball: In Forever, Robin fights Two-Face and the latter ends up hanging off a ledge. Robin hesitates before deciding to help Two-Face up from the ledge, stating he'd rather see him in jail...only for Two-Face to draw a gun and point it right at his face.
  Two-Face: The Bat has taught you well. That was noble. (points a gun at Robin) Stupid, but noble!
• Horrible Judge of Character: He falls completely in love with Poison Ivy and ignores her obvious villainous side. Shortly after learning she is working with Freeze he is still seduced by her and believes her when she suddenly offers to change sides to be with him and declares her love for him, even though she is having Bane attack Batman as they spoke and was flirting with Batman in their previous encounter too. This is somewhat justified by him being affected by Ivy's pheromones, but even when the two are apart he goes on about how the two of them are in love with each other. Although he eventually wises up by the time he encounters Poison Ivy again, he still is willing to give her a chance to prove her love to him. It takes her taunting him and trying to drown him to realize she isn't as in love with him as she claimed.
• Hotter and Sexier: One advantage to making Robin an adult in this continuity is that his costume design can go all-out in making him look like an oily bodybuilder. His later costume actually makes him look even more msucular than Batman.
• If You Kill Him, You Will Be Just Like Him!: His decision at the climax of Forever regarding Two-Face is based on this trope; he winds up captive due to sparing the villain.
• I Gave My Word: When he confronts Ivy in her lair he asks her to give him a sign of trust to prove her love by telling him what she and Freeze have planned. When Ivy tries to seduce him by offering to tell him in exchange for a kiss first, he promises to kiss her if she tells him first. After Ivy explains how Freeze is going to freeze Gotham, Robin tries to leave immediately to stop him, only for Ivy to pull him back to her and gently request the kiss he promised her "for luck". Robin is silent for a moment before leaning in and sharing a passionate liplock with Ivy. This is justified as Robin actually used the kiss between them as Ivy's real sign of trust to test if her love was real, which she failed by revealing her true evil nature to him immediately afterwards.
• Impact Silhouette: Early in Batman and Robin, Robin crashes through a wall while riding his motorcycle, somehow leaving a hole in the shape of the movie's Robin logo.
• Individualism vs. Collectivism: Robin represents the Collectivist to Batman's Individualist. He constantly says that they should work as a team and rely on each other, while Batman would rather go it alone and only lets Robin get involved if the danger is minimal or if he really needs the assistance. He does have some individualist leanings early on, turning down any offers of charity and planning to be a vigilante on his own terms, but discovering that Bruce is Batman gives him the idea to form a partnership, since their enemies are doing the same.
• It's All Junk: While grieving for his dead family, Dick considers throwing away his acrobat costume. Alfred hangs onto it instead in the hopes Dick will find his feet. Dick wears it one more time when he rescues Batman before switching to his Robin suit, which has the same colors as a tribute to his circus background.
• It's Personal: His vendetta against Two-Face who murdered his parents. Bruce tries in vain to discourage Dick from seeking revenge as the youth made it clear he wants to kill the villain, but when the Batcave is destroyed and Chase is captured Batman decides he could use the extra help. Robin for his part has calmed down enough to consider letting Two-Face live by this point.
• Jerkass Has a Point: In Batman & Robin, he complains about Batman constantly interfering when the two have a close grip on Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy during confrontations. Even though most of Robin's actions are out of selfishness and carelessness, he reminds Batman at one point that counting on each other and trusting each other is what being partners is all about. In an ironic twist of this trope, Bruce reminds Robin of this when he tries to get Robin to snap out of Poison Ivy's influence. It works.
• Leeroy Jenkins: Dick tends to leap into any fight headfirst with no sense of self-preservation. Naturally, he ends up getting abducted by Two-Face and frozen by Mr Freeze. This fuels the rift between him and Bruce, as the latter is concerned he'll fall right into Poison Ivy's obvious (fly)trap.
• The Load: Robin isn't the least bit useful when he and Batman confront the Riddler and Two-Face, only surviving capture and death because Batman had contingency plans. It's little wonder Batman gets over-bearing in Batman and Robin, given his previous track-record.
• Love Makes You Dumb: He starts with just a crush on Poison Ivy, but her seductions and love-dust turn it into pure blind love, and he makes increasingly stupid decisions. After learning she's a bad guy he tries to shake off his feelings for her, only to get several extra doses of love dust to break his will. Robin is then quick to accept her offer to work together, believing she loves him enough to switch sides immediately. He thinks Batman is jealous of their love and attacks him to defend Ivy from him, siding with his crush over his mentor and father figure. He sees a "Robin Signal" in the sky and immediately knows it is from Ivy, seeing it as a sign of her love for him and tries to go meet her immediately, not even questioning how she got the signal or why she's trying to contact him. Luckily he finally wises up and takes precautions when he confronts Ivy in her lair, pretending to still be blinding in love with her and wearing rubber lips just in case Batman's suspicions are correct. But even then he still makes the mistake of revealing his deception to Ivy while sitting next to her.
• The McCoy: Robin's the Id to Batman's Superego and Batgirl's Ego.
• Moment Killer:
  • Robin and Poison Ivy are constantly being interrupted when they are getting romantic and leaning in for a kiss. Batman interrupts them twice at Freeze's hideout, the first accidentally and the second on purpose.
  • At Ivy's lair, the two kill the moment themselves. After finally sharing a kiss, Ivy reveals her true colors and condemns Robin to death in mock sadness. Robin then kills it further by revealing he wore rubber lips, showing he didn't actually trust Ivy completely and was immune to her poison, while taunting her in the same mock-sad tone. Both of them exposing their lies and deception to each other kills the romantic mood between them, and results in Ivy shoving Robin off her throne and into her lily pond to drown him, officially ending whatever "relationship" the two had.
• Mr. Fanservice: Robin gets the same butt-shots that Batman gets when they're suiting up. Even his acrobatic solo in Batman Forever manages to give the audience an eyeful of his toned build.
• Nice Job Breaking It, Hero:
  • Robin accompanying Batman to the Riddler's hideout only serves to give the Riddler a second hostage, forcing Batman into a Sadistic Choice. Luckily Batman came prepared.
  • When Batman and Robin were chasing Mr Freeze, Robin charged head-first towards the villain while carrying a diamond that Freeze was trying to steal. Robin gets frozen for his efforts and Freeze yoinks the diamond from him.
  • He and Batman got into a fight because of Poison Ivy's pheromones, allowing her, Bane, and Mr. Freeze to escape.
  • Later, after learning from Ivy what her plan was he manages to survive the kiss it cost him with his rubber lips, but taunts Ivy over this by removing them instead of keeping it a secret and arresting Ivy while he had the element of surprise. This enrages Ivy and she shoves him off the flower-bed they had been sharing and into the pond where he is almost drowned by her plants.
• No Good Deed Goes Unpunished:
  • It takes him awhile, but Robin eventually decides he'll put his vendetta against Two-Face aside, going as far as saving the villain from falling off a precipice when Robin could have easily let him die. As thanks, Two-Face points a loaded gun at Robin and holds him hostage later on.
  • Just when it seems like Poison Ivy has fractured the Dynamic Duo irreparably, Robin reveals that he's been playing her for information (and stealing a kiss along the way). Ivy shoves him into a pool where he's strangled by a mutant plant and only saved when Batgirl arrives on the scene, meaning he would have died no matter what precautions he took.
• No-Sell: He is the only person to survive a kiss from Poison Ivy thanks to wearing rubber lips.
• Out-Gambitted: Pulls one on Poison Ivy, tricking her into believing he's still hopelessly in love with her and to reveal her plan and survived the kiss it cost him thanks to wearing rubber lips. He outsmarted Ivy and got to kiss his crush at the same time.
• Pyrrhic Victory: How his final confrontation with Poison Ivy ends. After she has spent the film seducing him and getting him to fall madly in love with her, he travels to her lair to determine once and for all if she really does love him or not. He ends up beating her at her own game of seductions by pretending to still be blindingly in love like she pretended to love him, flirting with her and telling her how he loved her to get her to lower her guard, and tricking her into telling him her plan with the promise he will kiss her if she does. He ultimately manages to successfully steal a deep kiss from his crush and smugly reveals it to her once she shows her own true colors. However, Ivy is so enraged and humiliated over this that after giving Robin a Death Glare, she shoves him off her throne and he tumbles backwards into her lily pond, where the vines attempt to drown him. Then to add further insult to injury, Ivy gives him a mocking wave goodbye as she struts past him and shouts a mocking "See ya!" to him to rub in that she was "breaking up with him" and getting the last laugh in their "relationship". Though Robin ultimately managed to escape this predicament and Ivy was defeated and trapped by Batgirl shortly afterwards, it was the last time the two of them directly interacted.
• Reckless Sidekick: Acts as one during Batman & Robin, as a nod to the Post-Crisis incarnation of Jason Todd (seen above). His attempts to be more independent constantly get him in trouble, which Batman chews him out on, which he fights Batman over and the cycle repeats. He ends up getting frozen by Mr. Freeze because of his recklessness and is quick to fall in love with Poison Ivy, even believing her when she promises to switch sides. Even when he takes precautions against Ivy, like Batman was trying to warn him, he ends up continuing his reckless streak by revealing his rubber lips to Ivy to one up her. This takes away his protection against her kiss and he leaves himself vulnerable to her, and he's almost drowned because of it.
• Red Is Heroic: His signature color, present on his darker costume and even on his civilian clothes.
• Red Oni, Blue Oni: The impulsive Red to Batman's cautious Blue. Not only is this reflected in their costumes, but marketing emphasised this quite heavily through color-coding merchandise (with Riddler and Poison Ivy being green and Two-Face and Batgirl being purple).
• Revenge Is Not Justice: After Two-Face kills his family, he immediately plans to kill him for revenge and Batman spends the film trying to talk him out of it. When Dick finds out Bruce's secret, he wants to join so he'd find Two-Face but Bruce rejects him because he knows from personal experience that revenge won't undo the damage done to him. Dick does eventually take this to heart and saves Two-Face during the climax... only to be betrayed and taken hostage.
• Secret Test of Character: He confronts Poison Ivy in her lair when she uses a "Robin Signal" to call him there. He acts like he's still in love with her to discover if her feelings for him are real. She reveals her plan to him as a sign of trust, but requests a kiss in return. Robin kisses her, believing if it is an innocent kiss then their love is real, but if she is evil and trying to kill him then he'll be protected with his rubber lips. Ivy fails his test by immediately confessing he will die and mocking him before his "death", so Robin gets back at her by revealing his rubber lips to her in the same mocking tone she spoke to him in.
• Sky Surfing: Robin and Batman engage in this while chasing Mr Freeze. Robin even shouts "Cowabunga!".
• Skyward Scream: Robin lets forth a particularly melodramatic one when Batman disables his redbird cycle before he can make a risky leap.
• Something Only They Would Say: While Ivy is seducing him, she says she can see his own "Robin Signal" in the sky. She later steals the Bat Signal and replaces it with Robin's symbol to lure him to her lair. When Robin sees it he immediately knows it is from Ivy, remembering their conversation, and believing it is a symbol of her love for him, he prepares to go meet her at her lair.
• "Take That!" Kiss: Amazingly, he manages to pull this on Poison Ivy. After the two of them kiss in Ivy's lair, Ivy shows her true colors, taunting Robin's upcoming death. Robin then one-ups her by showing he was wearing rubber lips that protected him from her poison. He tricked her into revealing her plan to him and stayed around long enough to share a kiss with his crush, essentially stealing a kiss from someone who kills with her kisses.
• Technician Versus Performer: The Performer to Batman's Technician. Batman is more reliant on technology and looks before he leaps, while as a former acrobat Robin is a natural thrill-seeker.
• Test Kiss: He allows Ivy to kiss him to settle once and for all if she is really in love with him or trying to kill him like Batman warned him. It turns out to be the latter, but Robin wore rubber lips for protection.
• Took a Level in Dumbass: He becomes much more reckless in Batman & Robin, ignoring Batman's warnings and thinking that his attempts to keep him safe is just him being controlling and jealous of his relationship with Poison Ivy.
• Universal Driver's License: Dick rides a motorcycle, but also managed to figure out how to take the custom-designed Batmobile for a joyride, albeit in a haphazard manner.
• Vague Age : Just how old is he supposed to be? Chris O'Donnell was 24 when the movie was filmed and looked it but the fact that Bruce took him in implies he's a minor. Bruce also refers to him being a college student, which again begs the question why he needed a legal guardian. Then there's the Riddler saying he enjoys Saturday Morning Cartoons and dreams of one day being bare naked with a woman implying he's closer to 14 or 15. This is only a problem with Batman Forever as Batman and Robin makes it clear he's a young adult.
• You Killed My Father: He wants to kill Two-Face for gunning down his entire family, but he eventually prefers to see the latter in jail.

Drake Winston

Drake Winston

"This town's gonna boil over unless somebody keeps the lid on. I'm gonna need a helper."

Appearances: Batman '89

"See, terrorizing bad guys? It's fine, I get it, but it's a dead end. You gotta inspire people to stand up on their own. To make the kind of world they want to live in."

A teenage mechanic living in the Burnside slums of Gotham on Earth-89. He also moonlights as a cloaked vigilante that even Batman has trouble fighting.

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• Adaptational Badass: While no version of Robin is a wimp, this is one of the few Robins that can actually overpower Batman, who regularly takes on entire gangs by himself.
• Arbitrary Scepticism: He doesn’t believe Catwoman to be real when Bruce tells him that she’s who defeated the thugs.
• Atrocious Alias: At the end of the comic he claims that a working codename for his costumed identity is the “Avenging Eagle”, which Bruce clearly finds amusing and Drake admits isn’t that good. This is despite being mistakenly called Robin by some kids earlier in the comic.
• Badass Boast: "Mr. Dent, when I get through with you...the ugly side's gonna be the pretty side."
• Black and Nerdy: Drake's already a computer whiz despite the story being set around the early 90s, having plotted out an online network for shipping car parts.
• Brought to You by the Letter "S": After earning the nickname "Robin" from the public, Drake starts wearing the letter R on his costume.
• But Now I Must Go: When Two-Face is defeated, Drake doesn't become Batman's sidekick. He instead forges his own path but promises to stay in touch with Bruce.
• Cheap Costume: Drake's initial Robin suit was just his overalls with a hooded cape and some armor on his arms and legs. Batman gives him an upgrade by replacing the overalls with tights and a kevlar vest.
• Comic-Book Fantasy Casting: He's physically based on Marlon Wayans, who was reported to be portraying him prior to Forever getting retooled.
• Composite Character: He's got the same economic background and hot-headed disposition as Jason Todd, but his first name of Drake evokes the surname of Tim Drake.
  • The scene where Drake meets Bruce in Wayne Manor and tells him outright that he knows he's Batman brings to mind Blake from The Dark Knight Rises.
• Contrasting Sequel Main Character: Drake contrasts Dick Grayson while also taking his place via retcon. Dick Grayson was a caucasian circus performer whose character arc begins with Two-Face destroying his life. Drake is African-American, lives in a slum and didn't have any personal beef with Two-Face prior to becoming a vigilante. Dick is a hothead that regularly butts heads with Bruce, while Drake is more level-headed and his ability to work with Bruce shows they're suited to each other as partners. Dick uses the name "Robin" as an Animal Motif, while Drake was given the name because his green overalls and hood caused the public to liken him to the famous Sherwood thief.
• The Cynic: He is very distrustful of authority figures and of the wealthy, and refuses to believe that Harvey or Bruce genuinely want to help people. While Harvey never gains his trust due to becoming Two-Face, he comes to realize that Bruce can be trusted after learning that he’s Batman.
• Guile Hero: He tricks Bruce into outing himself as more than some boring rich guy by threatening to fling acid in his face, to which Bruce responds by counterattacking. The "acid" was just water.
• Hero with Bad Publicity: Robin manages to get a good reputation among the Burnside locals, but Two-Face managed to pull a Wounded Gazelle Gambit on Drake in full view of them. this results in Drake getting accused of assaulting an injured man of the people and later accused of killing Jerome.
• Homage:
  • The surname "Winston" references the late Stan Winston, who developed the prosthetics for the Penguin in Batman Returns.
  • His background as a humble mechanic who pieced together his costume from discarded cloth and padding borrows from Darren Aronofsky's unproduced Batman: Year One film.
• In the Hood: Drake's outfit has a hood. Ironically, he operates within the slums.
• It's Personal: Two-Face cements himself as Drake's enemy when the youth finds out he murdered Jerome.
• Movie Superheroes Wear Black: His Robin costume is a dark cloak and hood with green highlights and a yellow interior. As a nod to his classic comic book palette, Drake's civilian attire has lots of red, yellow and green on it.
• Not Wearing Tights: Possibly the biggest deviation from Robin's original circus-themed costume. Drake's Robin suit is just a mechanic's overalls combined with a hooded cape and custom-made armor on his arms and legs. This changes after Bruce gives his costume an upgrade.
• The Paragon: As shown in his quote above, Drake believes that terrifying and punishing criminals can only do so much, and that he and Batman need to inspire people to be better and to improve the city themselves.
• Race Lift: The first Robin of African-American descent. Downplayed in that he's established as being a completely new character rather than a variation on a previous Robin.
• Red Baron: Drake entertains the idea of calling himself "the Avenging Eagle".

Others

Alfred

Alfred Pennyworth

"Perhaps the truth is, you really don't trust anyone."

Played by: Michael Gough

Voiced by: Jacques Ciron (European French), Michel Maillot (Canadian French)

Appearances: Batman | Batman Returns | Batman Forever | Batman & Robin | Batman '89

"I have no wish to spend my few remaining years grieving for the loss of old friends. Or their sons."

Butler of the Wayne family.

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• Alternate Self: Several across The Multiverse, such as Earth-Prime, Earth-9, Earth-203 and an undesignated Earth, the last of whom his existence overtook when the Flash created a new timeline. Also he exists simultaneously on both Earth-89 and Earth-97, the latter having a niece who becomes Batgirl.
• Big Ol' Eyebrows: Courtesy of Michael Gough. They allow him to make some hilarious expressions while still maintaing an air of dignity.
• Brain Uploading: Batman & Robin reveals that Alfred copied his brainwaves into the Batcomputer.
• The Comically Serious: Alfred delivers laughs without even trying. When Dick slips past him and discovers the Batcave, Alfred sports an hilariously disapproving scowl, which he gives Bruce later on as a non-verbal way of saying "your cover's been blown".
• Deadpan Snarker: It comes with his added career choices, namely being a butler to a troubled vigilante. When Dick asks about a perpetually closed-off room that leads straight to the Batcave, Alfred flatly states that it's where Bruce keeps his dead wives as a reference to Bluebeard.
• Delicate and Sickly: In Batman & Robin, Alfred suffers from MacGregor's Syndrome, a rare disease which Nora Fries also has, but his is in Stage 1, allowing for a potential for a cure.
• Disabled in the Adaptation: Sort of. While the Alfred in the comics has never had a major story involving his health being endangered, the plot of Batman & Robin features a critically-ill Alfred. Additionally, he's shown wearing glasses, which the comics Alfred doesn't wear, though it might be age-related as it was for Michael Gough at the time.
• Face Death with Dignity: Batman & Robin reveals he has developed MacGregor's Syndrome and is dying. Does he panic or become depressed over his coming death? No. He keeps doing his job, and assures Bruce that his only regret in life is that he was never able to join them in the field. In the end though, he lives thanks to Bruce finding a cure.
  "There is no defeat in death, Master Bruce. Victory comes in defending what we know is right, while we still live."
• Food as Bribe: Just when it seems like Dick Grayson is going to turn down Bruce's charity, in comes Alfred with a cheeseburger.
  "Is the young master Grayson leaving us? I'll just toss this away then. Perhaps the dogs are hungry."
• Hidden Depths: Bruce and Dick are surprised to hear that Alfred has been financially supporting his orphaned niece from afar for the last 5 years.
  "Secrets are a virtual prerequisite in this house. Don't you think so?"
  • And then then they find out that Alfred is hiding a terminal illness, and the above line takes on a much bleaker tone.
• I Want Grandkids: Of the Parental Substitute variety. In the first film, when Bruce says he has no time for a Vicki Vale romance, he sadly smiles and asks, "If not now... when?". The Flash unfortunately shows that Bruce only grew more reclusive after Alfred's passing, with no hints of a wife or children.
• The Jeeves: As usual, he serves as Bruce's confidante and played by the British Michael Gough.
• Mentor Archetype: To Bruce and later Dick. Dick's mentoring is given more emphasis, as unlike Bruce his family had just died, so Alfred felt the need to be more hands-on as the young man grieved.
• Morality Chain: He does his best to keep Bruce grounded.
  "I have no wish to fill my few remaining years grieving for the loss of old friends...or their sons."
  • Later when Bruce gives Dick a place to stay, Alfred warns Bruce that the two aren't as different as Bruce would like to believe.
  "Young men with a mind for vengeance need little encouragement. They need guidance."
• Parental Substitute: To both Bruce and Dick. In Batman & Robin, Alfred makes it clear that he thinks of the Dynamic Duo as the children he never had.
  "A sacred trust about two good men I've had the honor of calling son."
• Present Absence: Since his passing, Bruce has succumbed to bad habits. He dresses like he's homeless despite owning a mansion, he cooks some very basic meals instead of the more elaborate dishes Alfred makes and his social skills apparently got worse. The fact that there's no hint of another servant to fill the void hints that Alfred was irreplacable to Bruce and that his life means nothing without his most trusted valet.
• Related in the Adaptation: Batgirl is his niece in this continuity.
• Servile Snarker: As usual.
  • One highlight being when he presents Bruce with an invitation to Max Schreck's Christmas ball with the most pessimistic delivery you can imagine. When Bruce declines, Alfred enthusiastically tears the invite in two, only for Bruce to change his mind (purely because Selina Kyle might be there), to which Alfred gives his master an annoyed scowl.
  • Another moment being when Dick Grayson refuses Bruce's offer to stay at Wayne Manor until he finds his feet. Alfred casually walks in with a lavishly prepared burger and makes a big show of acting disappointed.
• Shipper on Deck: Alfred really wanted Bruce and Vicki together, even to the point of telling tales of a young Bruce to Vicki over dinner in the kitchen to charm her and let her see the real Bruce.
• The Snark Knight: Would there be a more fitting parental figure to the Dark Knight?
• Stiff Upper Lip: Unlike future depictions of the character who play the Only Sane Man role, this Alfred doesn't seem particularly fazed by Bruce's decision to put on a costume and fight crime.
  • In Batman & Robin Alfred has contracted Macgregor's Syndrome and is suffering great pain due to his old age, though he keeps it hidden so as not to worry Bruce or Dick. According to Alfred it's impolite for a valet to show weakness in front of his charges, but eventually he's left bedridden.
• Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome: Due to his advanced age, he's already deceased by the time of The Flash. The events of that film just happen to take place two years after Michael Gough's own passing.
• Truer to the Text: In Batman '89 Alfred has grown a mustache, bearing a stronger resemblance to his depiction in the comics.

Batgirl

Barbara Wilson

"Watch and learn, little boy."

Played by: Alicia Silverstone

Voiced by: Claire Guyot (European French), Aline Pinsonneault (Canadian French)

Appearances: Batman & Robin

"Men, always doing things the hard way."

The niece of the Alfred on Earth-97, who comes to America to visit her uncle and to free him from his life of servitude, believing him to be unhappy. She later learns the true identities of Batman and Robin, and suits up as Batgirl to help the Dynamic Duo save Gotham from Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy.

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• Adaptational Nationality: The movies make her British, when she was American in the comics.
• Adaptation Dye-Job: Batgirl is a redhead in the comics, but a blonde in Batman & Robin.
• Adaptation Name Change: From "Barbara Gordon" to "Barbara Wilson."
• Age Lift: Batgirl is traditionally old enough to be either a college graduate or approaching graduation, while this version is still in high school.
• Badass Biker: She holds her own very well during the illegal bike race, much to Robin's surprise. She mentions using stunt-riding as a way to earn a living after getting expelled from school.
• Bedsheet Ladder: Barbara uses one to escape her bedroom in the Wayne Manor so that she could go out on one of her nightly motorcycle races with the local Gotham City gangs.
• Big Damn Heroes: Batgirl shows up just in time to take on Poison Ivy after Batman and Robin end up in precarious conditions.
• Combat Stilettos: We even get a nice view of them during her suiting-up montage.
• Composite Character: Of Barbara Gordon and Alfred's niece, Daphne (who first shows up in 1969's Batman #216). Her blonde hair and domino mask are also reminiscent of the original Batgirl Betty Kane.
• Curb-Stomp Battle: Once Batgirl arrives at Ivy’s lair she kicks her butt in less than five minutes and leaves her trapped in her own throne with no trouble at all.
• Designated Girl Fight: She kicks Poison Ivy's botanical ass pretty well.
• Domino Mask: Unlike Barbara Gordon who wears a full cowl (unless she's riding a motorcycle), this Batgirl wears a smaller mask similar to Betty Kane.
• Fighter, Mage, Thief: Batgirl acts as the Thief to Batman's Mage and Dick's fighter, lacking the wisdom of the former or the temperament of the latter, but having her own set of skills to balance them out.
• Foil: Batgirl acts as one for Poison Ivy. Poison Ivy is a redhead who specialized in chemistry and biology, relies on Bane for protection and manipulates Robin. Batgirl is a blonde with an aptitude for technology, can hold her own in a fight and doesn't give Dick any hint that she's into him.
• Inexplicably Awesome: Batgirl gives Poison Ivy a proper beating after the temptress was able to overpower Batman and Robin. All without breaking a sweat.
• In Name Only: She is considered by many fans to be this due to the liberties taken with her origin, changing her from Commissioner Gordon's daughter to Alfred's niece, and dropping any original characterization and Backstory.
• The Kirk: Batgirl is the Ego to Batman's Superego and Robin's Id.
• Leg Focus: Barbara's legs are the very first thing that is seen of her. During her suit-up montage, we get a shot that travels up her thigh before resting on her buttocks.
• Locked Out of the Loop: Until the end, she was unaware of Bruce and Dick's relationship with Alfred as surrogate sons, let alone that they are Batman and Robin. As far as she's concerned, Alfred's their slave and she must free him.
• Male Gaze: Her suit-up scene is a montage from this perspective the entire time.
• Movie Superheroes Wear Black: Blonde hair aside, Batgirl doesn't have any yellow in her costume.
• Ms. Fanservice: During her suiting-up montage, viewers get nice glimpses of her butt, chest, and Combat Stilettos. Contrary to popular belief, her suit actually does carry some form of the Bat-Nipples found on Batman and Robin's suits, though due to concerns regarding the film's rating ^note Alongside the fact that the suit was designed by her uncle...probably best not to dwell too long on that detail., they're not nearly as prominent.
• Not Even Bothering with the Accent: Despite being from the UK. ^note Even worse is that Alicia Silverstone is a daughter of British immigrants.
• Pre-Asskicking One-Liner: Delivers one to Poison Ivy after crashing into her hideout.
  "Lady, you're about to become compost!"
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Gives one to Poison Ivy during their Designated Girl Fight.
  "Using feminine wiles to get what you want, trading on your looks? Read a book, sister. That passive-aggressive number went out years ago. Chicks like you give women a bad name."
• Related in the Adaptation: Here, she's Alfred's niece. Presumably this was to make her connection to the Bat-Family flow more naturally within the confines of a film.
• Silk Hiding Steel: Barbara's very good at playing a goody-goody niece, but she's just as capable as the Dynamic Duo. On her first night in Wayne manor she escapes from her bedroom that's a full storey above the ground. She also floors Dick when he sneaks up on her, to which he lampshades her unusually high combat skills. Then we find out that she does some dangerous motorcycle riding to earn money.
• Stepford Smiler: Barbara doesn't let Alfred know that she's aware of his deteriorating health, acting chipper every time they share a scene together.
• Unrelated in the Adaptation: She is Commissioner Gordon's daughter (or niece) in the comics.
• Worf Effect: She makes her debut as Batgirl invading Ivy's lair and beating her in a fight. Ivy had been giving Batman and Robin trouble for the whole film and had just captured both of them, but gets beaten by the new girl with no prior experience.

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