OMAR AZIMI

The character of Batman was created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane and made his debut in the March 1939 issue of Detective Comics. Though a crime fighter by night, Batman’s secret identity is Bruce Wayne, a wealthy philanthropist and owner of Wayne Enterprises. Batman’s origin story stems back to when Bruce witnessed the murders of his parents in cold blood, and when he vowed to bring justice for his parents.

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Although Batman got his start in comic books, there have several live-action movies (either as part of an ensemble or as the lead), as well as a live-action television show in the 1960s. Throughout the years, Batman’s suit has seen many technological advances and capabilities that better enable him to exact his brand of justice.

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The Dark Knight (2008) / The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises are the second and third chapters in Christopher Nolan’s Batman series. In The Dark Knight, Batman (Christian Bale) faces off with the Joker (played brilliantly by Heath Ledger); and Bane (Tom Hardy) in The Dark Knight Rises. Both films have received critical acclaim for the cast’s performances, action sequences, and musical score by Hans Zimmer.

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After being displeased with the Batsuit in Batman Begins, Bruce asks Lucius Fox (Morgan Freeman), an employee of Wayne Enterprise's Applied Sciences Division, to design a new suit. The new suit consists of Kevlar plates and consists of multiple pieces of armor which allows greater mobility. The cowl of the suit is separate and was inspired by motorcycle helmets. The fins on the side of Batman’s gauntlets are retractable and can be fired toward enemies as weapons. Most notably, the Batsuit comes with sonar vision, which converts signals from cell phones to images.

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Batman Returns (1992)

Batman Returns marks Tim Burton’s second Batman film, in which Michael Keaton returned as the titular character. The film is a sequel to the 1989 Batman film and follows Batman as he battles against Penguin (Danny DeVito) and Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer).

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The Batsuit received an additional upgrade in armor for Batman Returns. The suit was updated to have more angular armor, with more visible seam lines. The suit’s metal plates were also removed. This new suit’s cape was able to transform into hang-glider wings, which allowed Batman to fly from rooftops and travel further distances than the grapple hooks of the 1989 suit. Other features of the suit included a super-Batarang, signal jammer, zip-line grappler, and speargun grapple.

 

Batman (1989)

Directed by Burton, Batman introduced a more dark, gothic look to Gotham City as well as Batman himself. The movie also marks the first (of two) appearances of Keaton.

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The Batsuit, which was a huge step up from previous iterations, was designed by costume designer Bob Ringwood, who found it difficult to design the suit, due to Keaton’s average build. Producers also opted against using tights, spandex, or underpants on the suit. The suit included many tools for Batman to use, such as an upgraded utility belt, plated gauntlets (which contained hidden gadgets), and boots with shin guards. Despite Keaton’s average build, he easily helped make Batman much more fierce and intimidating.

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Batman Begins (2005)

Batman Begins, which rebooted the Batman film series, tells the origin story of Bruce Wayne. The film aimed for a more realistic and darker tone compared to previous films. Bale was cast as Batman and captured the emotional toll of becoming Batman and coming to terms with his parents’ deaths.

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The Batsuit was given to Bruce by Lucius Fox (Freeman). The suit, which was rejected by the Army, was sprayed with black rubber, and the bat symbol was added on. The suit contains built-in temperature regulators which allowed Bruce to stay comfortable inside the suit at any temperature. Additionally, Bruce added metal gauntlets with angular fin blades, which allowed him to block knife attacks. Most notably, the cape is made of memory cloth, which allows it to become rigid when electricity passes through it.

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Batman v. Superman (2016)

Batman v. Superman is a sequel to Man of Steel (2013) and unites Batman (Ben Affleck) and Superman (Henry Cavill). Although the movie received some praise for its pacing and story, it was critically panned and performed below expectations.

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The Batsuit used was made of a carbon fiber tri-weave, enabling high resistance against blunt force, sharp objects, as well as firearms. The cowl features an intercom as well as a scanning system. The cape features a serrated design that emulates a bat’s wings, and also acts as a glider and parachute.

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The Batman (2022)

The newest of the Batman films, The Batman was released on March 4, 2022. After Affleck dropped out of the solo project, Robert Pattinson was cast as the titular character. The film, which features Batman in more of a detective role as he faces off against the Riddler (Paul Dano) and Penguin (Colin Farrell), found its inspiration from various comic books as well as from Alfred Hitchcock.

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In an interview, Pattinson described the Batsuit as fitting “almost too perfectly.” The suit was designed to look homemade and feature aspects of everything Batman has been through up to the present. As a result, the suit features blood stains and bullet grazes in addition to general wear and tear. The bat symbol on the suit’s chest is also designed to be used as a tool and can pop out of the suit when needed.

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Batman & Robin (1997)

The final installment in Warner Bros’ Batman series, Batman & Robin was directed by Joel Schumacher and featured George Clooney in the titular role. In this film, Batman, along with Robin (Chris O’Donnell) battle against Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman). At the same time, Batman and Robin work to keep their friendship from imploding.

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The Batsuit in this film included aspects from Batman Forever and included a metallic finish, along with arm fins. The bat chest emblem lacked the yellow coloring and was featured as only a small oval. The suit included several tools as part of its utility belt, including magnets, a grapple gun, bat bombs, a laser, and a buzzsaw. Most notably and which many people criticize, the suit features protruding nipples.

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Batman Forever (1995)

In Batman Forever, Val Kilmer took over from Keaton as Batman, after he chose not to return. Schumacher took over directorial duties and disregarded Burton’s dark, gothic styles of Gotham City. This film is the first of two Batman films directed by Schumacher.

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The Batsuit saw a return to a chest plate that closely resembled muscles and included a darker Bat-insignia. Like its predecessor, the suit came with a variety of tools as part of the utility belt, which included an energy binder, a bat-bolo, grapple gun, welding laser, and Batarang. 

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Batman (1966-1968)

One of the most iconic Batmen, Adam West starred as the titular character alongside Burt Ward’s Dick Grayson/Robin in the 1960s television serieswhich aired on ABC. The show is most known for its campy style and its exaggerated comic-book-style plots. The fact that the show’s characters took these plots seriously added to the show’s lasting success.

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The Batman suit on the show is one of Batman’s most iconic costumes and was used as inspiration by Matt Reeves for The Batman (2022). Although the Batman suit matched the tone of the show and is beloved by many, the costume itself looked poorly at times, from the ears to the cowl itself.

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Batman (1943)

The 1943 serial marks the first time that Batman was depicted as a live-action character. The series consisted of 15 episodes/chapters which were individually released per week beginning in July 1943.

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Batman was portrayed by Lewis Wilson, who was the very first person to don the Batman suit. As a result of the production’s low budget, the suit itself was relatively simple, with a pointy cowl and a modest-sized bat symbol on the chest. The suit also came with a rudimentary utility belt.

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Batman & Robin (1949)

The 1943 Batman serial proved to be successful and was followed by an additional 15-chapter serial called Batman & Robin. Wilson did not reprise his role as Batman and was replaced by Robert Lowery. Johnny Duncan joined Lowery as Dick Grayson/Robin.

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Contrary to popular belief, the suit used in the 1943 production was not reused for Batman & Robin. It’s reported that the suit used in the 1949 production was too large for Lowery, with the cowl not properly fitting his face.