5 Batman Villains That Need Their Own TV Show

Batman’s rogue gallery is touted as the best one in all of comics and it’s not hard to see why. There are literally dozens of widely known supervillains that regularly do battle with Batman in and out of Gotham City. Even non-comic book fans can probably name five or six of Batman’s villains off the top of their head. The psychos and costumed horrors who do battle against the Dark Knight are amongst the most well known villains in the superhero genre, and there is no shortage of coverage of them, even outside comics. The Gotham tv show focused heavily on many of their origins, and the Penguin recently starred in a critically acclaimed show of his own on HBO, The Penguin. Heck, even Kite Man has his own show.

There are nearly endless stories that can be told about these villains and how they operate in the wider world, even without coming into conflict with the Caped Crusader. That means there are plenty more Batman villains who are deserving of their own shows. It it is squarely about the villains here, no vigilante needed. So with that being said, let’s dig into five of Batman’s rogues that deserve to star as the leading character in their own tv show. 

5) Scarface and the Ventriloquist

We’ve seen the beautiful and crazy heights that a crime thriller set in Gotham can take us to in The Penguin, but a show starring Scarface would take it one step further. Arnold Wesker is a mild and spineless man, but he has an alternate personality that is one of Gotham City’s most dangerous villains. He expresses this other self through a small gangster puppet named Scarface, who is a ruthless mobster that wants to rule Gotham’s underworld with an iron fist. Not only would this show be able to tell the same type of intense criminal story as The Penguin, but it would be insanely hilarious. Not only is Scarface a puppet, but he talks like a stereotypical 1930s gangster and has the thickest accent in all of comics. He physically cannot say the letter B, they all come out as Gs. A show centered around this dysfunctional duo would really be able to capture the perfect mix of zany and scary that Gotham is so known for.

4) Catwoman

Selina Kyle is one of Batman’s most recutting and best flames, but she can also stand as the star of her own story really easily. She is one of the best thieves in the DC Universe, and has a storied history inside and out of Gotham. I would pay insane amounts of money to see Ed Brubaker’s run of Catwoman on television. The series focuses on Selina as the protector of Gotham’s East End, an anti-hero in the middle of a down to earth noir that is wrought with beautiful interpersonal drama and relationships. It makes Gotham City feel truly alive and distinct, and Catwoman starring here opens the door to all kinds of guest appearances from other Gotham regulars like Leslie Thompson, Commissioner Gordan, and even Batman himself. Selina is a great character with an awesome supporting cast all her own, and it is a crime she doesn’t have her own show already.

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3) Ra’s al Ghul

Ra’s is certainly one of Batman’s oldest and most dangerous villains. He’s a centuries old mastermind who founded the League of Assassins and repeatedly resurrects with the dark secrets of the Lazarus Pits. A show focused on Ra’s can span literally hundreds of years in the stories it tells, focusing on different eras as Ra’s rises from a man of endless ambition to a man whose shadow stretches across continents. A wonderful story to begin the adaptation would be the history of how Ra’s created the first Lazarus Pit, told in the instant classic that is “Gotham Nocturne.” Or even his amazing post-Crisis origin recounted in Batman: Birth of the Demon. Future episodes or seasons could focus on Ra’s endeavors to destroy humanity in order to “save” the world. Other characters such as Talia al Ghul, Lady Shiva, and Damian Wayne, or even Bruce Wayne himself during his years of training. An episodic show following the rise of Ra’s empire would be an incredible watch on all fronts.

2) Two-Face

Harvey Dent is definitely one of Batman’s most emotionally interesting rogues, specifically because he starts at such a high place and falls so far. Once a trusted ally of Batman, Harvey becomes one of his worst enemies. Two-Face has already been a prominent character in multiple live action adaptations of Batman-related material, and definitely has the stuff to be the lead in his own show. It would be incredible to see an adaptation of Christian Ward’s current Two-Face solo series, where Harvey battles his own demons as he struggles to find justice in the “undercourt” of Gotham City. Or even an adaptation of a story like “The Long Halloween,” told specifically from Harvey’s perspective as his drive to change Gotham for the better clashes with his hatred of what it is, slowly driving him towards madness. Two-Face is the perfect character to lead a crime thriller that tackles the psychological extremes of madness and justice, and I would not have to flip a coin to decide to watch it or not.

1) Mr. Freeze

Victor Fries is easily one of Batman’s most tragic villains, with his entire purpose revolving around his obsessive desire to revive his wife, Nora, from her deadly disease and cryogenic prison. A show centered around Mr. Freeze would be somewhat poetic, as it is originally Batman: The Animated Series that reinvented the character into the tragic man he is. A Mr. Freeze tv show would be perfect if it delved into the cold, clinical science that Freeze employs to fill the void his wife’s fate left in him. A great story to adapt would be “Ends of the Earth,” which comes from Scott Snyder’s run on All-Star Batman. It follows Freeze as he awakens an army of cryogenically frozen people in an attempt to figure out a way to awaken Nora, and if need be, freeze the earth so she can roam it freely. It gives Mr. Freeze the perfect mix of sympathy and villainy, which are both so essential to his character. A show following Freeze has the potential to hit the hearts of everyone who watches it in a way no other villain can, and it would be really, really cool.

So those are the five Batman villains who deserve a tv show the most. Some of these shows would be tragic, some hilarious, and some plain awesome. No matter what, it would be great to see some of these amazing characters hit the TV screen running. These characters are the best of the worst, and they’d be great on the small screen.