- "The Batman" premieres this weekend, starring Robert Pattinson as the Batman himself.
- This film takes place outside of the rest of DC Comics' Extended Universe, so everyone from the Snyderverse was recast.
- Here's how the gritty new film compares with Batman's colorful comics universe.
Robert Pattinson is taking over as the seventh live-action Batman in "The Batman."
If you include animation, there have actually been eight Batmen before Pattinson: Adam West, Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, Kevin Conroy, Christian Bale, Ben Affleck, and Will Arnett.
Pattinson's Batsuit is a little more subdued than the classic gray, black, and yellow costume of the comics, but in recent years, Batman's suit has become more muted on the page as well.
Here's how Batman traditionally looks in the comics.
Batman debuted in the pages of Detective Comics all the way back in March 1939, making him one of the longest-running comics characters, ever.
Robert Pattinson's version of Bruce Wayne is a little more emo than his traditional vibe.
Does he look like he could be part of a My Chemical Romance tribute band? Yes — and we love it.
Here's what Bruce Wayne traditionally looks like ... a little more James Bond-esque.
Bruce, sometimes, pretends to be a party-boy billionaire in order to prevent anyone from looking closely into his personal life.
Zoë Kravitz is playing Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman. She's the fifth live-action Catwoman.
Kravitz joins a (mostly) iconic list of Catwomen: Lee Meriwether, Michelle Pfeiffer, Anne Hathaway ... and Halle Berry, but the less said about that movie, the better. Kravitz also voices the character in "The Lego Batman Movie."
In "The Batman," Selina hasn't fully become Catwoman yet, but she's well on her way.
Here's what Catwoman looks like on the page.
Catwoman made her comics debut in the very first solo issue of "Batman" in the spring of 1940. Ever since, she's been by Batman's side in various ways, from actively working against him to almost marrying him.
The film's main antagonist is the Riddler, played by Paul Dano.
Dano is the latest version of the Riddler, after Frank Gorshin in the 1966 film "Batman: The Movie" and Jim Carrey in 1995's "Batman Forever." Conan O'Brien also briefly voiced him in "The Lego Batman Movie."
This take on the Riddler is much darker, with the villain acting like more of a cryptic serial killer a la "Zodiac" or "Seven."
In the comics, the Riddler has one of the most flamboyant costumes. Director Matt Reeves definitely toned down the camp for the film.
The Riddler, real name Edward Nygma (or Edward Nashton), made his comics debut way back in "Detective Comics No. 140" in October 1948, and has remained one of Batman's trickiest foes ever since.
A secondary antagonist is an unrecognizable Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot, better known as the Penguin.
The most famous live-action version of the Penguin is easily Danny DeVito's truly unnerving version of him in "Batman Returns," though Burgess Meredith also played Cobblepot in "Batman: The Movie" in 1966.
In "The Lego Batman Movie," Cobblepot is voiced by the film's editor, John Venzon.
We can expect to see much more of the Penguin, as Farrell will star in a spin-off series about the criminal for HBO Max.
Unfortunately, Farrell doesn't rock the top hat and monocle of his comics counterpart.
Cobblepot made his first appearance in comics during "Detective Comics No. 58" in December 1941.
Jeffrey Wright took on the mantle of Gotham police officer James Gordon, the only person in the GCPD who will work with Batman.
Due to the ... complex nature of DC's cinematic universe, Wright is playing Gordon at the same time as JK Simmons (who played him in "Justice League" and will reprise the role in "Batgirl").
Other on-screen Gordons include Gary Oldman in the "Dark Knight" trilogy, Pat Hingle in the Burton/Schumacher films, and Neil Hamilton in the '60s movie.
Héctor Elizondo voiced him in "The Lego Batman Movie," while Bob Hastings voiced him in "Batman: Mask of the Phantasm."
And a special shout-out to Ben McKenzie, who also played Gordon for five seasons on "Gotham."
For most of his comics run, Gordon has been the police commissioner of Gotham.
Gordon has been a part of the Gotham landscape for almost as long as the Caped Crusader himself, making his comics debut in "Detective Comics No. 27" in May 1939.
Bruce's loyal butler and closest confidant, Alfred Pennyworth, is played by Andy Serkis.
Alfred is one of the most important people in Bruce's life, and he has appeared in every on-screen version of Batman's story, played by Alan Napier, Michael Gough, Michael Caine, and and Jeremy Irons in live-action, while Ralph Fiennes and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. have both voiced him.
Jack Bannon also plays a young version of him in the Epix series "Pennyworth."
Alfred is a little more buttoned-up in the comics.
Alfred made his first comics appearance in April 1943, in the issue "Batman No. 16."
Powerful mob boss Carmine Falcone is played by John Turturro.
Turturro is only the second person to ever play Falcone on-screen — his movie debut was in 2005's "Batman Begins," in which he was played by Tom Wilkinson.
Falcone has been part of Batman's comics lore for decades, but he's still the "newest" comics character in the film.
Falcone was created in 1987 in "Batman No. 405," clearly as a response to the rise of mob movies like "The Godfather" and "Scarface."
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