Ranking The 8 Actors Who’ve Played Batman

Val Kilmer (Batman Forever)

When Michael Keaton opted out of making a third Batman movie (a moment in his life that would later turn into an Oscar-nominated role in Birdman) because of the new director, Schumacher, the list of actors reportedly considered for the role is remarkable – Ralph Fiennes, Daniel Day-Lewis and Johnny Depp were included. But it was Val Kilmer, whose performance in Tombstone impressed the director, who eventually took the cowl. Allegedly, though, he never read the script. Whoops.

It turned out that neither Schumacher or Kilmer did a lot of research going into the project, as the two quickly learned one thing: that they didn’t like each other. The production was bothersome, as Kilmer and the director constantly butted heads.  Schumacher later described his star as “childish and impossible.” Only God (and the crew) knows why.

The film, as well as Kilmer’s performance, did better than Batman Returns at the box office, but got mixed reviews. Though Bob Kane, the infamous creator of Batman, thought Kilmer was the best and truest to his vision, the actor was destined to be a one-and-done hero.