There are few superheroes as utterly iconic as Batman, especially within the sphere of modern movies. The Caped Crusader has been featured in many movies over the years, with a range of directors taking a variety of approaches to adapting the DC hero’s story. Naturally, these adaptations extend to other parts of Batman’s story, including his stacked rogues’ gallery. Across the various incarnations of Batman in movies, he has faced numerous villains, with some being changed considerably for their appearance on the big screen. While there have been some iterations of Batman villains that have left fans disappointed, there have been many more that have been pretty incredible.
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The best Batman movies all have one thing in common: they feature great villains. Subtly adapting the antagonist to better suit the style and tone of the movie they’re in is a delicate art, but one that has often been perfectly pulled off by directors and actors over the years. With so many great Batman movies out there, it only makes sense that there’s just as many great iterations of his villains, too.
10) Carmine Falcone (The Batman)
There were several villains in The Batman‘s cast, but one that was all too easy to overlook was Carmine Falcone. The Gotham City crime boss is one of Batman’s few enemies not to make use of a supervillain persona, but rather fits the profile of a more realistic figure from the world of organized crime. Played in the movie by John Turturro, Carmine Falcone spends much of the film as an unseen player who is indirectly responsible for multiple events within The Batman‘s narrative.
What makes Falcone such a great villain in The Batman is how organically he slots into its world. With only a handful of scenes, John Turturro’s take on the villain feels an organic part of The Batman‘s Gotham, one that helps connect the movie’s more outlandish aspects to real-world criminals by adding a character with realistic credibility. He’s not entirely unsympathetic to Batman’s plight, either, making him a fascinatingly complex take on the villain.
9) Two-Face (The Dark Knight)
There have been several iterations of the villain Two-Face in Batman movies, but the one that stands out the most came in 2008’s The Dark Knight. Played by Aaron Eckhart, Harvey Dent plays a major role in the movie’s story, appearing for much of its runtime as the idealistic DA attempting to bring down Gotham’s entire network of organized crime in one huge case. His villain turn is connected to Batman, when the Joker forces the hero to make an impossible decision, leading to the death of Rachel Dawes and the disfigurement of Dent.
Eckhart’s Two-Face is only a villain for a short time, but he has quite an impact on the story of the Dark Knight trilogy. With a more realistic and understandable motivation for developing his binary obsession, The Dark Knight‘s Two-Face is excellent both in design and in execution. Dent’s transformation is written as a true tragedy, but that does nothing to make the villain any less terrifying, and that’s a key part of what makes him such an excellent adaptation of the character.
8) Scarecrow (Batman Begins)
Even before Cillian Murphy was catapulted to superstardom, he was a widely respected actor who had played many incredible roles. 2005 saw him appear in Batman Begins, where he played the role of Jonathan Crane, better known as the villain Scarecrow. The first Batman villain properly introduced into Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, Murphy’s take on Scarecrow has long been praised as one of Nolan’s most comic-accurate, despite him only playing Batman Begins‘ secondary antagonist.
First introduced as the clinical and corrupt psychologist working alongside Carmine Falcone to smuggle mystery drugs into Gotham, it’s only a little later that his Scarecrow persona is shown. Donning a terrifying sack mask and spraying fear toxin at his victims, Scarecrow is an especially frightening figure who strikes the balance between devastatingly intelligent and incredibly dangerous. This makes him a fear-inducing villain who brings the DC character to life in emphatic fashion, adding another layer of peril to Batman Begins‘ plot.
7) Bane (The Dark Knight Rises)
Bane was another villain to make it into Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy, making his appearance in 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises. While the previous live-action incarnation of the DC character was much weaker than he was in the comics, The Dark Knight Rises better captured what makes Bane such an interesting and dangerous figure. Tom Hardy’s performance as Bane is both imposing and unnerving, and puts across not just the villain’s physical strength but also his impressive skill as a tactician.
The Dark Knight Rises‘ take on Bane is a little more realistic in its presentation, but in personality, it’s largely comic-accurate. Hardy’s Bane is Batman’s equal in many ways, allowing the movie to pay homage to the Knightfall story of the comics. Hardy’s Bane brilliantly captures the spirit of the character while also staying true to the tone of Nolan’s continuity, making him an excellent Batman movie villain.
6) Catwoman (Batman Returns)
While she may not be the movie’s main or even secondary antagonist, Catwoman in Batman Returns stands out as one of the best Batman movie villains. Her role as an anti-hero puts her both at odds with and eventually on the side of Batman, making her a complex figure within the movie’s story. Played to perfection by Michelle Pfeiffer, Batman Returns‘ take on Catwoman is still considered one of the best and most innovative in the character’s history.
Perfectly blending into the quirky Gotham of Tim Burton’s Batman movies, Pfeiffer’s Catwoman is a unique figure. The character makes use of Catwoman’s most common traits from the comics, but also adds a sexually-charged flair to her actions that makes her especially confronting to the movie’s uptight hero. Not only is she an incredibly character in her own right, but she’s one that helps elevate Batman Returns‘ story in multiple ways, qualifying her as one of the Dark Knight’s most iconic movie villains.
5) Penguin (Batman Returns)
Tim Burton’s Batman Returns is remembered fondly even decades after its release, with some considering it one of the best superhero movie sequels ever made. It continued Burton’s vision for a quirky, gothic take on Gotham City with some even more striking characters, especially Danny DeVito’s Penguin. The movie’s take on the Batman villain was a far cry from his more typical depiction in DC Comics, leaning heavily into the idea that his birth defects led him to be raised as more animal than human.
DeVito’s Penguin is a repulsive figure, who is designed to be as repulsive as possible both in looks and personality. However, Batman Returns is still able to evoke some sympathy for the villain, establishing him as a product of repeated mistreatment rather than a truly evil character. In many ways, Batman Returns‘ Penguin is the movie’s perfect villain: he’s intriguing, emotionally complex, and horrifying all at once, while also fitting perfectly into Burton’s bizarre Batman mythos.
4) Ra’s Al Ghul (Batman Begins)
Batman Begins is often unfairly overlooked as an exceptional Batman movie. Its status as an origin story also links Batman’s origins to a villain lesser-known to wider audiences, as it establishes that the majority of his training came at the hands of the League of Shadows, led by Ra’s al Ghul. Played in the movie by Liam Neeson, Ra’s al Ghul’s true identity isn’t revealed until the film’s third act, when he is firmly established as Batman Begins‘ true villain.
Liam Neeson’s character, initially introduced as Ducard, acts as Bruce Wayne’s mentor before eventually revealing his more villainous nature. By creating an inherent connection between the movie’s hero and villain, Batman Begins is able to add a whole new subtext to Batman’s actions in their final confrontation. The way that Ra’s al Ghul is written as a manipulative and deceptive villain with a keen insight into Bruce Wayne’s motivations is excellent, and makes him a truly brilliant antagonist for the Dark Knight trilogy’s first installment.
3) The Joker (Batman)
Over the years, there have been many live-action versions of the Joker. Some are far more memorable than others, with only a handful doing true justice to Batman’s nemesis on the big screen. 1989 saw Oscar-winning actor Jack Nicholson tasked with playing Gotham’s Clown Prince of Crime opposite Michael Keaton’s Caped Crusader for Tim Burton’s Batman. The movie depicted the origin of the villain, as well as pitting him against the titular hero.
Jack Nicholson’s Joker is an exceptionally-crafted blend of comic accuracy and homage to Cesar Romero’s take on the villain from the 1960s. Additionally, it makes perfect use of Nicholson’s own unnerving comedic charm, making him a deeply unsettling but still charismatic figure. The movie’s wacky but deadly approach to the Joker was one that ushered in a new era for the character, and proved that even the most high-concept comic book villain can be done justice in a serious live-action adaptation.
2) The Riddler (The Batman)
The Batman proved to be a hugely successful adaptation of the hero’s story, with Matt Reeves’ version of the DC mythos proving especially gritty and imaginative in its approach to the source material. Its noir story saw Batman investigating the murders of the Riddler, whose crimes indicated a more sinister plan for Gotham. Played by Paul Dano, the movie’s version of the Riddler was unlike most other incarnations of the villain in the best possible way.
Paul Dano’s Riddler was a daring reinvention of the character. Inspired by real-life serial killers, The Batman‘s Riddler was a frightening antagonist that remained largely unseen throughout the movie. His motivations mirroring modern societal issues create parallels between the villain and a portion of the real-world population, with the disenfranchised Riddler not unjustified in his rage, but rather extreme in his methods. This makes The Batman‘s Riddler a thought-provoking villain that takes an established character in a new direction, making him an excellent character in his own right.
1) The Joker (The Dark Knight)
Though Heath Ledger was initially seen as a controversial casting decision for the superhero movie, his role in 2008’s The Dark Knight has since become a legendary piece of cinematic history. Ledger appeared in Christopher Nolan’s movie as the Joker, delivering perhaps the greatest performance in the history of the superhero genre. Ledger’s Joker is widely considered not just the best Batman movie villain, but one of the best villains in movie history.
There is very little about Ledger’s Joker that isn’t perfect. From concept right through to execution, everything about the villain is simultaneously mesmerizing and horrifying, with his brutality masked by his undeniable screen presence. Ledger truly steals the show in The Dark Knight, with the dark reimagining of the iconic villain revamping his image for a new generation, establishing him as one of the most frightening and ruthless figures in superhero cinema.
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Image courtesy of Lucasfilm.
