The 92nd annual Academy Awards kicked off on Sunday night, and they gave movie fans quite a lot to take in. In addition to finding out which films were awarded or snubbed, the telecast itself had some pretty memorable moments. One unexpected sequence came during the nominees for Best Adapted Screenplay, unintentionally giving two prolific DC characters mainstream praise in a major way. Joker was among the nominees in the category, and the gritty DC movie was credited as being “based on characters by Bob Kane, Bill Finger, and Jerry Robinson“.
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For DC Comics fans, especially those familiar with the history of Batman and the characters in his orbit, this moment was incredibly bittersweet. Batman’s creation has been shrouded in controversy, as Kane was credited as the sole creator of Batman for decades. In recent years, an effort has been made to acknowledge Finger’s instrumental role with the character, thanks in part to the documentary Batman & Bill. Robinson, who served as an artist on many Golden Age Batman issues, is also regarded to have a pivotal role in Joker’s visual design.
The fact that all three men were mentioned in the credit – much less on such a monumental stage – pulled on DC fans’ heartstrings in the best way. Here are just a few thoughts on that.
Delight
I didn’t like Joker, but I am delighted beyond words that its adapted-screenplay nomination announcement gave Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson the credit they’re richly due. #Oscars
— Michael Rapoport (@rapoportmike) February 10, 2020
Perfect
It’s nice to see Bill Finger & Jerry Robinson getting the recognition they deserve in creating the majority of what we ALL think of when we think anout #Batman & his villains.
— David Vox Mullen (@DavidVoxMullen) February 10, 2020
(I’m still #DrunkTweetingTheOscars)
Same?!
Seeing Bill Finger’s name, I’m tearing up.
— M@tthew (@matthewplmurphy) February 10, 2020
Amazing
Joker was whatever but it’s really cool to hear Bill Finger’s name read at the Oscars as one of the character’s creators
— Justin Giglio (@justingiglio_) February 10, 2020
Awesome
Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson getting credit to the Joker too is just so awesome. #Oscars
— Sil (@sil_vallejo22) February 10, 2020
Good
if anything good came of JOKER it’s that they acknowledged Bill Finger at the Oscars
— Keith (@keithmwatt) February 10, 2020
Heartwarming
Seeing Bill Finger and Jerry Robinson get credits at the Oscar’s warms my nerd heart. Despite Bob Kane’s attempts to bury their contributions to Batman, Esp in Finger’s case, Its great to see them finally get the credit, And recognition they rightly deserved for so long. #Oscars
— The Brandalorian (@Clowny501) February 10, 2020
Surreal
Never thought I’d see Bill Finger’s name appear during an Oscars telecast. That’s something.
— Mr. LA Mamba Fan 🐍 (@MrLASportsFan) February 10, 2020
