Tim Burton's Batman hit theaters in 1989 and was a huge hit with fans and critics alike, earning over $400 million at the box office. After the campiness of the 1960s Adam West Batman, Burton's film ushered in a darker era for the Caped Crusader. Burton's 1992 sequel, Batman Returns, was also a major success, although, some fans think it was too dark and many of the Penguin scenes came off quite scary.
Batman and Batman Returns still hold up to this day and helped pave the way for Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy, which many consider the best Batman franchise of all time. However, the Batman/Bruce Wayne persona present throughout the Burton films is widely regarded as the best of all time and features many unique qualities on which no other Bat-film would ever touch.
10 Michael Keaton's Acting Performance As Both Bruce Wayne & Batman Was Perfect
Originally, fans of Batman were skeptical about Michael Keaton becoming the new Dark Knight because he was known for more comedic roles. However, Keaton knocked it out of the park and was great as both Batman and Bruce Wayne, mixing the nuances of both personalities to near perfection. There have been several Batmen since Michael Keaton and while some were better than others, no actor has been able to capture both the charming Bruce Wayne persona and the intimidating Batman the way Keaton did.
9 Batman Didn't Have Robin Or Any Other Bat-Family Members
As Batman's sidekick in the comics and in the '60s Adam West show, Robin accompanied the Dark Knight on most of his adventures. However, Tim Burton decided not to use Robin or Batgirl because both Batman and Batman Returns already had enough characters and he didn't want to overcrowd the films. While Marlon Wayans was originally cast as Robin in Batman Returns, the character was eventually cut.
8 Bruce's Parents Were Killed By Jack Napier AKA The Joker
While Batman's parents were killed in a dark alley in the comics, the perpetrator was a random mugger named Joe Chill. Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins would use Joe Chill in its plot. Tim Burton, however, decided to add more to the Joker's origin by giving him the name Jack Napier and making him the murderer of the Waynes. This decision proved to be divisive among fans, even though it added more depth to Jack Nicholson's Joker and the role he played in creating Keaton's Batman.
7 Batman Nor Bruce Wayne Has A Close Relationship With Commissioner Gordon
Jim Gordon has been associated with Batman for many years and although he does play an important role in Burton's movies, the two characters aren't as close compared to other iterations. Gordon witnesses the Dark Knight for the first time at Axis Chemicals and tells his men to pursue him. Predictably, Batman uses his smoke bombs and disappears.
After the Joker is defeated, Batman sends Gordon and the GCPD the bat signal, which he uses at the beginning of Batman Returns when the circus gang attacks downtown. Besides a short conversation in Batman Returns, the two characters don't interact very much, especially compared to The Dark Knight Trilogy and the DCEU.
6 Both Of Bruce Wayne's Girlfriends Find Out He's Batman
Bruce Wayne has always been a rich billionaire with a playboy reputation, so it came as no surprise that Burton's Batman featured two beautiful companions for the titular hero. Both Vicki Vale in Batman and Selina Kyle in Batman Returns found out the true identity of Batman by the end of each film. Unfortunately, neither character returned to the Batman world after Joel Schumacher took the reins from Tim Burton.
5 He Had The Same Batmobile & Batsuit In Both Of Burton's Films
It seems with each passing Batman movie and as well as in the comics, the character is always changing his look and upgrading his Batmobile. Batman has had many different suits, from his original blue and grey colors in the comics to his black and grey colors from video games and other movies.
The Batmobile has also changed hundreds of times over the years, from the long-used Adam West model to the Nolan-era tumbler. However, Burton kept the same Batmobile and the same black suit with the yellow bat logo for both his movies, which was the right move because both are so classic.
4 The Batcave Was Very Basic Compared To Other Iterations
The Burtonverse Batcave was actually huge and really cool. That said, it was quite simple in comparison to other movie and comic Batcaves. Usually, all Batcaves are pretty big in size and actually do house bats, but they also have a lot of keepsakes Batman has from the villains he defeated. Burton's Batcave had stairs and a couple of walls of computers and monitors, which is all this Batman needed to defeat Joker and Penguin.
3 Burton's Batman Inspired The Beloved Batman: The Animated Series
The success of 1989's Batman and 1992's Batman Returns inspired Batman: The Animated Series (BTAS), one of the most popular and successful animated shows of all time. BTAS would go on to incorporate several things from Burton's movies, including the main theme song and Joker's real name being Jack Napier. The animated series would go on to produce 85 episodes, win an Emmy, and spawn its own spinoff, The New Batman Adventures.
2 Both Batman's Main Villains (Joker & Penguin) Die At The End Of Each Movie
Batman usually has a code for not killing, but in both Batman and Batman Returns, his main villains both die at the end of their respective movies. In 1989's Batman, Batman uses his grappling hook to attach Joker's leg to a heavy gargoyle and the weight causes him to fall to his death. In Batman Returns, Penguin's bombing at the zoo goes wrong and his fight with Batman leads to him falling into the sewers' toxic waters and later succumbing to his injuries.
1 Batman's Voice Was Intimidating But Not Loud Or Over The Top
The voice of Batman has been a big talking point of more recent Batman films, mainly because Christian Bale's Batman voice was over the top yelling and Ben Affleck's Batman voice was altered with a voice-changing machine. Michael Keaton's Batman was voice was quietly gruff, yet it still came off intimidating without him having to shout his lungs out. The first scene in which Batman is shown in the 1989 movie features the Dark Knight threatening two muggers on a rooftop and telling them, "I want you to tell your friends about me" and "I'm Batman" in his threateningly calm voice.