While The Batman is enjoying widespread critical acclaim, one of the perceived negative aspects of the film for some critics is the unrelenting grim tone. Though the character of Batman has always had darker roots than many of his Justice League counterparts, Bruce Wayne still surrounds himself with a constantly growing loving family who provides a counterbalance to Gotham's darkness.
One of the most important supporting characters to Batman is Robin. The character is usually an adopted or biological offspring of Bruce Wayne, and the animated versions of Batman typically understand that Robin is a vital part of the character's history. While live-action Batman featured Chris O'Donnell as the Dick Grayson version of Robin in Schumacher's Batman Forever and Batman and Robin, there has not been a true Robin since. If Robert Pattinson's Batman breaks that streak and includes a Robin, he'll need a younger actor capable of holding their own on-screen.
10 Anthony Keyvan Could Portray Dick Grayson's Dual Nature
Dick Grayson made his debut in 1940, putting an end to just one year of Batman being a loner. Grayson is the first sidekick to successfully graduate and have a well-loved solo series. He's led the Teen Titans, worked alongside Deathstroke, and has even been a super spy.
Like Pattinson's Batman, Dick has a dark history of being his parents being murdered, but Grayson retains a greater range of sociability. As a breakout star from Love, Victor, Anthony Keyvan portrays a social character who has great doubts about his relationship with his family, something Grayson definitely experiences early on with Batman. Keyvan has demonstrated strength in portraying characters who are warm and likable, while still having emotional baggage.
9 David Mazouz Has Played A Young Batman, But He's Better Suited As Dick Grayson
Gotham is marketed as being about Gotham City before Batman arrived. However, the first season features David Mazouz as a recently orphaned Bruce Wayne, and subsequent seasons focus on Bruce's development as Batman. It is the Batman Begins journey, retold in television form.
Mazouz has already demonstrated he can play a traumatized orphan who channels his hurt into kindness, and Dick Grayson is the perfect way for him to do it on the big screen. Since Pattinson's Batman is 180 degrees removed from Mazouz and Gotham's portrayal of Wayne, Mazouz playing Dick Grayson instead would definitely alter the course of Pattinson's Batman - which is exactly what Robin is supposed to do.
8 Jack Dylan Grazer's Previous Roles Involve Clowns And Superheroes, Making Him A Perfect Jason Todd
In the comics, Jason Todd is the second Robin to hold the mantle. However, the darker version of Batman portrayed by Pattinson may choose a more somber Robin. Jason is a lover of literature and history, but he also believes some criminals deserve to die. That belief is only reinforced when he is murdered by the Joker and comes back to life as a vengeful Red Hood.
Jack Dylan Grazer has a history with the DCU, playing Freddy Freeman in Shazam! He has also portrayed Eddie, a child terrorized by clowns in It. Both of these roles make him a perfect choice to confront the Joker in sequels to The Batman.
7 Jaeden Martell's Extensive Acting Experience Could Be Used For Grayson Or Todd
Both Grayson and Todd are complex sidekicks for different reasons. While Grayson needs an actor capable of portraying a constant tight-rope act of balancing light and dark components of the hero life, Todd needs someone who can bring to life the effects of poverty, abuse, and the furious determination to stop others from being hurt.
Jaeden Martell successfully portrays a young boy with cancer trying to save an abused neighbor in The Book of Henry. Martell has also acted in such complex films as Knives Out, Defending Jacob, and It. He has the acting tools to play a convincing Robin, no matter which character Matt Reeves might choose.
6 Noah Schnapp Can Hold His Own Against Pattinson As Tim Drake
While Tim Drake is traditionally the third Robin, he is also the easiest to fit into Bruce's story. Tim is a detective who figures out Bruce's secret identity, and he becomes Robin because Drake claims that "Batman needs a Robin" to balance out Batman's rage and darkness. Drake is a character who is smart enough to earn the approval of both Ra's al Ghul and Bruce Wayne.
Noah Schnapp has worked with Steven Spielberg and played a starring role in Netflix's enormous hit, Stranger Things. He has both the range and the experience to costar alongside an actor as formidable as Pattison as a character who demands to be part of Batman's world.
5 Aidan Gallagher's Acting History and Activism Make Him A Natural Tim Drake
One of the reasons that Drake makes his case directly to Batman about why he needs a Robin is because Drake is very aware of the problems in Gotham at the time. To portray him well, an actor has to be able to understand how to convey that both the urgency of a problem and a solution.
Aidan Gallagher is a vegan actor who serves as a UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador and actively advocates for a number of organizations devoted to helping the environment. This passion for doing right, combined with his past acting credits in Modern Family and The Umbrella Academy make him a good fit for Tim Drake.
4 Mckenna Grace's Roles In Sci-Fi, Horror, Drama, And Comedy Make Her A Compelling Stephanie Brown
As the daughter of a criminal known as the Cluemaster, Stephanie Brown took on the persona of Spoiler in order to take her father down. After Spoiler, she spent time as both the fourth Robin and Batgirl. She is irreverent of Batman's brooding, and primarily cheerful, even while collecting clues to put her dad in prison.
Mckenna Grace has played a child prodigy before, first when she starred in Gifted with Chris Evans and again when she guest-starred in Young Sheldon. She's also had experience in drama, science fiction, and horror. These experiences would make her fit in well with the film noir Gotham that Pattinson's Batman inhabits.
3 Storm Reid's Background In Drama And Superheroes Could Offer A Different Take On Stephanie Brown
The Pattinson Batman universe has already demonstrated a willingness to racebend characters with the stellar performance of Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle. There is no reason they could not also choose an actress of a different race to portray Brown.
Storm Reid's debut as an actress is in the gut-wrenching period film, 12 Years a Slave. She's also had roles in the fantasy film, A Wrinkle in Time, and in the superhero movie, Sleight. She also has a small role in The Suicide Squad. Having proven that she is able to handle emotionally charged drama and lighter fare, there's no doubt she could deliver a great performance as Robin.
2 Arsalan Ghasemi Could Portray Damian Wayne In A Later Installment
The only Robin who is related to Batman by blood is his son, Damian Wayne. Damian's mother is Talia al Ghul, the daughter of supervillain Ra's al Ghul. Damian would need to be a character in a later installment of the movie series. But neither Reeves nor Pattinson seems to be in a hurry to quit making Batman films, and if Robin is introduced later, it could easily be the Damian Wayne version.
Arsalan Ghasemi has significant roles in a number of dramas, including the television series Ta Soraya and the 2013 drama, Scandal. As Damian is the most serious of the Robins, Ghasemi's previous drama experience makes him the best fit for the character.
1 A Career Acting In Psychological Thrillers Makes Sophia Lillis Perfect For Carrie Kelley
Carrie Kelley is the third Robin of Earth-31, and she also uses the names of Catgirl and Batwoman. While she is not the traditional Robin many audience members may think of, in many ways she is the most appropriate Robin for Pattison's Batman. Kelley's universe includes Frank Miller's very somber takes on the Caped Crusader, including the stories The Dark Knight Returns and The Dark Knight Strikes Again.
Sophia Lillis has appeared in the HBO miniseries, Sharp Objects, which is a psychological thriller. She's also played a teenager coming to terms with telekinesis in I Am Not Okay with This. These genres are both good fits for the Robin to Pattinson's Batman.