Tim Burton’s Batman is one of the most important movie franchises of the past several decades. Not only did Burton’s take on Batman bring the character back to his darker roots and show that superhero movies could continue to be box office successes, but the influences of Burton’s Batman also influenced future takes on the Dark Knight, even directly inspiring Batman: The Animated Series.
While Burton’s take on the Caped Crusader is looked back on with relative warmth, the same cannot be said for Joel Schumacher’s Batman. Taking over from Burton, Schumacher made his movies more family-friendly, a change in tone which would eventually lead to the critical and commercial failure of Batman and Robin. However, not everything changed when Burton reluctantly handed over the reins to Schumacher.
10 Long Batmobiles Still Cruised Gotham’s Streets
In recent years, the trend of the Batmobile has leaned towards the tank style. Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, the DCEU, and even the Arkham series of video games (Arkham Knight) have decided to model their Batmobile in a more realistic manner, making it look like a military vehicle.
However, Burton opted for a longer, more stylized Batmobile and this was carried over into the Schumacher films in both Batman Forever and Batman and Robin. Although it must be said, Burton’s Batmobile design still stood head and shoulders above the rest.
9 Pat Hingle Stayed On As Commissioner Gordon
There weren’t many stalwarts of the Burton Batman movies that carried over into the Schumacher movies. Michael Keaton was recast as Batman, Michelle Pfeiffer didn’t return as Catwoman, and there were no living villains to bring back either.
However, one stalwart did return to Gotham City for the Schumacher movies: Pat Hingle’s Commissioner Gordon. The actor would continue to play Batman’s ally until Batman and Robin.
8 Michael Gough Continued To Work As Alfred
Alfred is, arguably, Batman’s greatest ally. While Robin and Batgirl might help Batman in a more physical manner, it is Alfred who acts as a father figure and helps keep Bruce Wayne from delving too far into his dark persona.
Michael Gough played the role of Alfred incredibly well across both the Burton and Schumacher movies, with the actor arguably putting in the best performance as Alfred in any adaptation of the character.
7 A Highly Stylized Version Of Gotham City
One of the main things that have failed Batman movies recently is the lack of personality to Gotham City itself. Both Nolan’s trilogy and the DCEU haven’t imbued any sense of personality on the city, instead showing Gotham to be a relatively normal city.
However, Burton’s Gotham was a sprawling, Gothic nightmare that looked to be straight from the pages of a comic. While Schumacher took a different direction with Gotham, no one could say that it didn’t have its own unique personality.
6 Batman Still Couldn’t Turn His Head
One of the things that have changed to some extent in recent years is the Batman actor’s experience in the costume. Almost every Batman actor prior to Christian Bale complained about the inability to turn their head in costume.
As a result, across the Batman movies from the late '80s and '90s, the Dark Knight can be seen dramatically moving his whole body or leaning back as if wearing a neck brace in order to see something.
5 A Similar Face Kept Appearing
Comic book movies are known for their cameo appearances. Stan Lee’s appearances across several Marvel movies over the years have become a thing of legend. However, this isn’t a new occurrence in the comic book world.
Famously Bob Kane was set to appear in Batman (1989), but wasn’t able to make it to filming on the day. While the co-creator of Batman didn’t appear in the movies, his wife, Elizabeth Sanders, did appear in Batman Returns, Batman Forever, and Batman and Robin.
4 Batman’s Dating History Was Alluded To
During Keaton’s run, Batman/Bruce Wayne dated both Vicki Vale and Selina Kyle, with both women not returning for a sequel. However, while neither of them returned for a sequel, both did get mentioned in the following film.
Vicki Vale was mentioned in Batman Returns and Selina Kyle/Catwoman was mentioned by Doctor Chase Meridian during Batman Forever.
3 The Intro Sequences Set The Tone & Introduce The Cast
The intro sequences for Batman and Batman Returns set the mood for the film perfectly, taking the viewer along some dark journey as Danny Elfman’s iconic score plays in the background.
While the Schumacher films dispensed with Elfman’s score, Elliot Goldenthal’s fantastic and atmospheric score sets the scene wonderfully in the Schumacher era.
2 Burton’s Influence Carried Over To Some Degree
While Tim Burton didn’t return to the director’s chair for Batman Forever, he was given some creative influence over the sequel. In Batman Forever, Tim Burton was listed as a producer for the movie.
That being said, while Burton stayed on as producer, it’s clear that the studio was taking a sharp left turn away from his vision of Batman.
1 The Batsuits Stayed Broadly The Same
One of the most infamous aspects of Schumacher’s run as Batman director was the Batsuits. For some reason, the director decided to add nipples to the Batsuit, much to the ire of fans around the world.
That being said, ignoring the nipples, the Batsuits stayed broadly the same beyond Burton’s films. All Batsuits had a circular bat logo on the chest, a full-body suit, long ears, and fake muscles.