For some, the first image that comes to mind when they picture the Dark Knight is one of the many great live-action Batman actors from over the years. However, in the eyes of other Batfans like myself, the definitive onscreen iterations of one of DC Comics’ most iconic heroes really exist in some of the best animated Batman movies and TV shows and is voiced by the likes of Will Arnett and the late Kevin Conroy.
The question is, which of the best Batman voice actors deserves to be recognized as the finest of them all for managing to represent the greatest strengths and complexities of Gotham City’s Caped Crusader with only their voice? Well, to be honest, we may have already revealed our answer, but we should still begin with our last (but not necessarily least) choice in the following ranked list of the many voices of Batman.
10. Jason O’Mara (Various Titles)
With DC Comics’ New 52 reboot came the DC Animated Universe’s reboot, featuring a Dark Knight voiced by Jason O’Mara in 11 features that include a reimagining of the Justice League’s origin story with Justice League: War in 2014 and a subsequent series of new Batman adventures — many of which would make for a great live-action remake one day.
I personally do not believe the Irish actor (who is also, technically, part of the MCU after playing Jeffrey Mace on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.) brought anything unique or memorable to the role, but his take is undeniably brooding and badass, especially in the way he tells the Court of Owls to “get the hell out of [his] cave” in 2015’s Batman vs. Robin.
9. Troy Baker (Various Titles)
One of the few actors who can say he has played both Batman and the Joker (even in the same movie once — namely 2019’s Batman vs. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles) is accomplished voice actor Troy Baker, who also has an innumerable amount of other DC characters under his belt. However, while his Clown Prince of Crime tends to get the most love, he makes for a great Caped Crusader, particularly in the way he captures Bruce Wayne’s inner turmoil in both movies and video games, like Batman: The Telltale Series.
8. Jensen Ackles (Batman: The Long Halloween)
Years after playing a grown-up Jason Todd in 2010’s Batman: Under the Red Hood (more on that one later), former Supernatural cast member Jensen Ackles got to play the big guy himself in 2021’s two-part adaptation of Jeph Loeb’s Batman: The Long Halloween. With his winning performance as both a diligent Caped Crusader and a Bruce Wayne burdened by his double life that made Troy Baker a fan, it is easy to see why he is returning to play Batman in the upcoming movie, Legion of Super-Heroes, in 2023.
7. Rino Romano (The Batman)
While it may share a title with Matt Reeves’ more recent take on the Dark Knight, The Batman, essentially, served as an animated counterpart to 2005’s Batman Begins as it premiered just a year before Christopher Nolan’s reboot and followed a younger Bruce Wayne taking on new, more bizarre variations of his rogues gallery.
However, Rino Romano’s portrayal of the title hero — who also go his own underrated movie with 2005’s The Batman vs. Dracula — bears very little similarity to (and, arguably, comes close to surpassing) Christian Bale’s with a voice that never overdoes it with the gravel and a demeanor that effectively balances broodiness with levity when the moment calls for it.
6. Peter Weller (Batman: The Dark Knight Returns)
My personal, all-time favorite depiction of Batman in any medium comes from Frank Miller’s seminal, revolutionary 1986 graphic novel, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, which follows a Bruce Wayne coming out of retirement in his mid-50s as a bolder, more brutal and unyielding warrior than ever before.
No choice could have been better to play this version of the brooding hero in a two-part adaptation released in 2012 and 2013 than RoboCop star Peter Weller, who — at 65 — makes the concept of this senior superhero, not only believable, but fearsome, especially in the way he delivers classic, badass Batman quotes like, “This isn’t a mud hole. It’s an operating table, and I’m the surgeon.”
5. Adam West (Various Titles)
While better known as one of the earliest and most beloved portrayals of Bruce Wayne’s alter ego, the late, great Adam West also used just his unmistakable voice to play Batman in a few animated series, including The New Adventures of Batman in the late 1970s and SuperFriends the following decade. Among his final performances was a reprisal of his “Bright Knight” in two animated films that paid tribute to the 1960s Batman TV show — 2016’s Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders and Batman vs. Two-Face the following year — that, even decades later, was just as lively and enigmatic as ever.
4. Diedrich Bader (Batman: The Brave And The Bold, Harley Quinn)
No Batman actor has ever managed to both pay a winning homage to Adam West’s uniquely lighthearted portrayal while incorporating many of the character’s more earnest, modern characteristics in such a smooth blend like Diedrich Bader. As the lead of Batman: The Brave and the Bold and with his recurring spot on HBO Max’s Harley Quinn, the former Drew Carey Show star’s Batman is one that demands serious attention without shying away from the chance of making you laugh.
3. Will Arnett (The LEGO Movie, The LEGO Batman Movie)
When it comes to humor, however, Will Arnett’s LEGO Batman — who was first introduced in 2014’s The LEGO Movie before getting his own brilliant spin-off in 2017 — is on a whole different level entirely. In addition to the former Arrested Development cast member’s hilarious, Christian Bale-inspired voice and snarky, absurdist tone, this depiction — especially in The LEGO Batman Movie — succeeds in both honoring and parodying many of the Dark Knight’s defining characteristics in a way that elevates it above even some of the more truly earnest iterations at the time.
2. Bruce Greenwood (Various Titles)
That being said, my allegiance is still with the more earnest animated iterations of Batman and one of the strongest in recent memory has been played by Bruce Greenwood in movies like 2018’s Elseworlds tale, Gotham by Gaslight, or the hit TV show Young Justice. However, his finest hour comes from one of the best animated DC movies ever, Batman: Under the Red Hood, in which he brilliantly captures his guilt following the tragic death of Jason Todd. His nuanced, impassioned performance makes me hope we see of more of this portrayal, which may come closest to the power of our Number One choice.
1. Kevin Conroy (Various Titles)
As far as I am concerned, most of the live-action Batman movies so far have not even held a candle to how perfectly the character was represented in Batman: The Animated Series and the other TV shows and movies it is connected to. The key to its universal acclaim is Kevin Conroy, whose vigorous, commanding, and (most importantly) human performance has become the benchmark for how most Batfans tend to judge subsequent portrayals and the voice they hear when they read a Batman comic.
Having lost Conroy to cancer at the age of 66, we may never see another depiction of Batman as definitively brooding and passionate as his, but he will thankfully live on in countless titles like the Arkham video games, the Justice League animated series, and more.
While we certainly have our own answer for who deserves to be called the best of the Batman voice actors so far, keep in mind that he truly speaks with many different voices, is seen with many different faces, and acts with many different characteristics. There is not one defining Dark Knight, but many, so that whichever you choose to complete your admiration is part of what keeps his enduring legacy alive.
