Batman has been adapted into live-action productions multiple times, and while Gotham has a very distinctive look in the comics, the city's appearance has changed significantly depending on the filming locations. The city has been portrayed in different ways, from monumental and dark, to vibrant and shiny. And while most of the time this variety came in response to a change in audiences' and filmmakers' preferences, this wasn't always the case.
The Batman Serials Were Filmed in Los Angeles
Coming out only four years after the first appearance of the caped crusader in Detective Comics, the 1943 Batman serial depicted him as a government agent fighting foreign enemies. Being a wartime product, the serial is filled with anti-Japanese propaganda, making it difficult to recommend. The 1949 serial Batman and Robin, on the other hand, focuses more on crime-fighting.
Both productions suffered from a limited budget, which led to significant deviations from the comic. The Batmobile is just a convertible, and the cowl barely fits the actors, but the element that suffers the most is Gotham. The city was supposed to be a fictional take on New York, but the serials were filmed in Los Angeles for financial reasons. As a result, exterior shots may seem a bit out of place for traditional Batman fans. Despite its differences, the serials seem to have also popularized certain aspects of the Batman mythos that later became essential components of the comics, like the secret entrance to the Batcave and the physical appearance of Bruce Wayne's butler, Alfred.
The Batman 66 TV Series & Movie Used California for Gotham
Views on Batman 66 have evolved considerably since its original. Despite being a beloved show for generations of children, the turn of both comics and movies toward darker themes made people see both the television series and the film as a mockery of the Dark Knight. In recent years, however, the actors' performances and the writing have been recognized as excellent comedy by both younger and older generations.
Most of the film version, which came out between Seasons 1 and 2 of the TV show, was shot in studio sets. Some buildings, like the exterior of Gotham City Police Headquarters, can still be found on Warner Bros. backlot. Like the 1940s serials, however, the outdoor shots were filmed around California. The entrance to the Batcave, for example, is located in Bronson Canyon, while the famous pier in which the hero desperately tries to get rid of a bomb is Stearns Wharf in Santa Barbara. The landscape and architecture don't quite fit with more modern interpretations of Gotham, filled with tall structures and dangerous dark alleys, but the colorful real-world buildings are a perfect match for the comedic take on the Caped Crusader.
Tim Burton's Batman Movies Turned Pinewood Studios Into Gotham
Tim Burton's Batman and Batman Returns came out at a time when comics like Watchmen and The Dark Knight Returns had steered fans' tastes toward darker stories. Burton understood this and combined innovative gadgets and well-choreographed action scenes with themes like vengeance, greed and redemption. Gotham City becomes a character in this new take, with monumental gothic buildings, rusty factories and polluted streets that enhance the feeling of danger waiting behind every corner.
Many of the locations, like Harvey Dent's office, were filmed inside Pinewood Studios in England, but several buildings around London were used for both interior and exterior shots. The outside of Axis Chemicals, for example, was a power station in Little Barford, while the Knebworth House, a Tudor house north of London, gave audiences an outside view of Wayne Manor. Impressively, many of the areas inside Bruce Wayne's home, like the costume room and the library, were actually shot inside a real mansion known as the Hatfield House.
Joel Schumacher's Batman Movies Split Gotham Between L.A. & New York
When Joel Schumacher took control of the franchise with Batman Forever in 1995, many fans worried about the change in tone. While Val Kilmer's Bruce Wayne was still a relatively serious character, Tommy Lee Jones and Jim Carrey took a more comedic and even cartoony approach to their interpretations of Two-Face and The Riddler. The film's overall art design followed a similar direction, with bright and vibrant colors taking over vehicles, gadgets and costumes. This trend was taken to the extreme in Batman and Robin, where George Clooney, Uma Thurman and Arnold Schwarzenegger brought audiences what is probably the closest the franchise has come to a return to the campy style of Batman 66.
Interestingly, Batman Forever was shot at locations in both New York and Los Angeles. The Webb Institute of Naval Architecture in Long Island served as the new Wayne Manor, while Ed Nygma's party at the Ritz Gotham Hotel took place in the lobby of the Hollywood Pantages Theater. Batman and Robin, on the other hand, was almost completely filmed inside Warner Bros. Studios in California. The only exception was a shot of Wayne Manor's gardens, which were filmed at Greystone Park in Beverly Hills.
In Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy, Gotham Went Global
It took Warner Bros. eight years to greenlight another Batman project. This time, the studio chose Christopher Nolan, giving him a considerable amount of creative control over the franchise. His trilogy, consisting of Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, sought to ground the Caped Crusader in a more realistic Gotham. This manifests in his rejection of an "evil lair" feel for the city. Batman Begins' Gotham uses a combination of computer-generated graphics and real locations from the United States and Britain. Lucius Fox lab, for example, was an event hall at the Exhibition Centre London, while the Board of Trade Building in Chicago was presented as the Wayne Enterprises Headquarters.
For The Dark Knight, Nolan reduced the use of CG for exterior shots, using instead IMAX cameras to immerse the audience in real-world locations. The famous opening robbery scene was filmed using this technology at the Chicago Post Office. Many of the interiors are also real locations. The scenes taking place inside the Gotham City Police Station, for example, were shot inside the Familoe Building in London. The Dark Knight Rises used a similar approach but spread its production across different cities. Bane's bomb attack during a football match was filmed at the Heinz Field in Pittsburgh and used actual players from the Pittsburgh Steelers. The battle between Bane, Batman and the police takes place in Manhattan's Financial District.
Fox's Gotham TV Series Was Shot in New York City
In September of 2014 Fox launched Gotham, a series that followed a young James Gordon as he fought against corrupt officers and a constantly evolving criminal underworld to instill order in the city. As the title reveals, the showrunners intended to focus on Gotham as a fertile ground for criminal masterminds. However, its dark tone was limited to what could be shown on TV. To compensate, the series used actual locations, as well as poorly lit streets, similar to Nolan's trilogy (although with a much smaller budget). Most of the show is filmed either inside Steiner Studios and in several locations around New York. Interestingly, the building used as Wayne Manor in Batman Forever, the Webb Institute, makes a return as the home of young Bruce and Alfred.
Zack Snyder's Gotham Is a Combined Detroit, Chicago and Massive Sets
Zack Snyder gave audiences a first glimpse of a DC Cinematic Universe with Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, in which Gotham is largely composed of locations in and around Chicago and Detroit. Ben Affleck's Bruce Wayne had moved out of Wayne Manor, which now lay in ruins; that exterior shot was filmed at Sutton Scarsdale Hall in the United Kingdom.
Justice League's more ambitious scenes, which relied heavily on sets and CG, were filmed at Warner Bros. Leavesden Studios in southeast England. However, some real-world locations, including aerial shots of Chicago, were used to portray Gotham. For example, Southill Lake and Woods in Bedfordshire was used for reshoots of the lake at Bruce Wayne's Glasshouse, constructed for Batman v Superman at Camp Metamora, north of Detroit. By contrast, the exterior shot of the S.T.A.R. Labs building in Gotham is a combination of special effects and the Chicago skyline.
Titans Transforms Ontario Into Gotham
DC's popular team of superhero sidekicks made their live-action debut in 2018, in Titans. Filmed in Ontario, Canada, the show attempts to replicate the dark tone of previous Batman incarnations and makes heavy use of badly lit environments. While the series involves classic characters like Raven, Starfire and Beast boy (popularized in both comics and animated series), it focuses heavily on Dick Grayson and the conflicts he developed with his mentor, Bruce Wayne. As a result, the series replicates various landmarks made famous in the comics and movies. Casa Loma, a house in Toronto, serves as the series' take on Wayne Manor. For Arkham Asylum, the crew chose an old prison in Guelph.
Joker Turned to New York & New Jersey to Bring Gotham to Life
Todd Phillips' 2019 gritty take on the Joker was heavily inspired by Taxi Driver's depiction of New York City. The director used CG altered shots from locations in New Jersey and New York and gave the city of Gotham a depressing color palette that serves as a perfect frame for Arthur Fleck's descent into madness. Arthur's first appearance as the Joker, in full suit and make-up dancing on a set of stairs, was shot in the Bronx. The subway scenes take place at real stations around New York, while the Brooklyn Army Terminal Building was used for external shots of the Arkham State Hospital. The riots at the climax of the story were shot in Newark.
Batwoman's Gotham Is Actually Vancouver & Chicago
Premiering on The CW in 2019, Batwoman originally centered on Bruce Wayne's cousin, Kate Kane, who embraced the symbol of the Bat to fight crime in Gotham. However, Kate died in a plane crash at the beginning of the second season, which left Ryan Wilder to fill the void after discovering the Batwoman costume. Batwoman's Gotham is a combination of real-world locations in Vancouver and Chicago. Wayne Enterprises, for example, is actually the Chicago Board of Trade Building.
Birds of Prey Return to Los Angeles to Find Gotham
Although heavily criticized, the original Suicide Squad served as an introduction to Margot Robbie's portrayal of Harley Quinn. The character quickly became a fan favorite, and Warner Bros. didn't wait long before greenlighting a Harley-centered spinoff, Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn).
The Birds of Prey version of Gotham reflects the protagonist's sunny (although unstable) disposition. Gotham City had not seen shots this bright and colorful since Batman Forever and the 1966 TV series. Interestingly, as with the first Batman serials, the movie was filmed in a studio, but also across different real locations in Los Angeles. The team's celebration at the end of the movie, for instance, was shot at Gil's Super Burger. The interior of Gotham City Police Department was filmed inside the Unocal Building in Los Angeles.
Matt Reeves' The Batman Brings Gotham Back to the UK (& Chicago)
In stark contrast to Harley Quinn, director Matt Reeves' upcoming film The Batman finds Gotham not in sunlight but in the shadows. Starring Robert Pattinson as Bruce Wayne, the noir-inspired 2022 film is set during the Dark Knight's second year fighting corruption in his hometown, once again created from a combination of real-world locations.
Principal photography began in London before expanding to such locations as Glasgow, Liverpool and Bedfordshire, while also utilizing Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden. Chicago was also used for some exterior shots and stunt scenes.