Which actors got top billing in the Batman movies?

When it comes to the Batman movies, it’s fair to say the Caped Crusader is always the star of the picture. Whether Batman’s name is in the title of the film or not, Batman is the big draw and audiences will line up around the block to watch Gotham City’s greatest hero in action.

But despite Batman being a big deal on film, does the actor in the cape and cowl always get top billing? Surely they must, right? It’s a Batman film, so the actor playing Batman has to be credited first, don’t they?

Actually no, not always. While the actor playing Batman usually gets top billing, this is not always the case. On two occasions, another member of the cast has been bumped to the top!

Oh, and if you’re wondering what ‘top billing’ means, it is basically who gets the first on-screen credit in the film. Whoever’s name appears first in the movie (and usually on the poster) is given top billing, and therefore viewed as the most important star in the film.

The two movies where the actors playing Batman were overshadowed by their co-stars were 1989’s Batman and 1997’s Batman & Robin. With both movies, Batman actors Michael Keaton and George Clooney were second billed behind Jack Nicholson and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

In the case of Batman, Nicholson was top billed for his role as the Joker. In Batman & Robin, Schwarzenegger headlined the film as Mr. Freeze.

Why did this happen? Because when both movies were released, Nicholson and Schwarzenegger were viewed as being bigger stars than Keaton and Clooney. 

Bigger stars get top billing – even in Batman movies. Yes, it seems odd that Michael Keaton wouldn’t be the big name in Batman, but prior to the film’s release, he wasn’t a household name in the same way Nicholson was.

The same applied to George Clooney. While the actor was famous in the 1990s, and was well-known for his role as Dr. Ross on hit TV show ER, Schwarzenegger was internationally the more recognisable actor out of the two.

Clooney was famous, but mostly through television. On the flipside, Schwarzenegger was a box-office juggernaut, with a string of hit movies behind his belt.

Outside of the two instances noted above, every other Batman movie gave the actor playing Batman top billing. Here’s a list of who topped each film:

Top billing in the Batman movies 

• Batman: The Movie (1966) – Adam West
• Batman (1989) – Jack Nicholson 
• Batman Returns (1992) – Michael Keaton
• Batman Forever (1995) – Val Kilmer
• Batman & Robin (1997) – Arnold Schwarzenegger 
• Batman Begins (2005) – Christian Bale 
• The Dark Knight (2008) – Christian Bale 
• The Dark Knight Rises (2012) – Christian Bale
• Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) – Ben Affleck
• Justice League (2017) – Ben Affleck
• The Batman (2022) – Robert Pattinson

If you’re wondering who got what billing in each film, he’s a little more information:

Batman: The Movie (1966)

In Batman: The Movie, Batman actor Adam West got top billing, with Robin actor Burt Ward getting second billing. Lee Meriwether (Catwoman) was billed third, with Cesar Romero (Joker) fourth, Burgess Meredith (Penguin) fifth, and Frank Gorshin (Riddler) sixth.

Batman (1989)

As noted above, when it came to 1989’s Batman, Jack Nicholson (Joker) took top billing, with Michael Keaton (Batman) second. Kim Basinger (Vicki Vale) was billed third.

Batman Returns (1992)

For Batman Returns, Michael Keaton was bumped up to first place, while Danny DeVito (Penguin) was credited second, and Michelle Pfeiffer (Catwoman) third. Christopher Walken (Max Shreck) was billed fourth.

Batman Forever (1995)

With Batman Forever, Batman actor Val Kilmer took top billing, with Tommy Lee Jones (Two-Face) second, Jim Carrey (Riddler) third, and Nicole Kidman (Dr. Chase Meridian) fourth. At the time of the movie’s release Chris O’Donnell (Robin) was a relatively unknown actor, so he was credited fifth.

Batman & Robin (1997)

For Batman & Robin, Arnold Schwarzenegger (Mr. Freeze) was billed first, with George Clooney (Batman) second. Chris O’Donnell was bumped up to third place (a significant step-up from Batman Forever), while Uma Thurman (Poison Ivy) and Alicia Silverstone (Batgirl) were billed fourth and fifth respectively.

Batman Begins (2005)

The billing for Batman Begins was as follows: Christian Bale (Batman) first, Michael Caine (Alfred) second, Liam Neeson (Ducard/Ra’s al Ghul) third, Katie Holmes (Rachel Dawes) fourth, Gary Oldman (Jim Gordon) fifth, and Cillian Murphy (Scarecrow) sixth.

The Dark Knight (2008)

For The Dark Knight, Christian Bale and Michael Caine remained in their positions of first and second respectively, while Heath Ledger (Joker) was third and Gary Oldman was fourth. Aaron Eckhart took fifth billing as Harvey Dent, while Maggie Gyllenhaal was billed sixth as Rachel Dawes, taking over the role from Katie Holmes.

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

With The Dark Knight, Christian Bale and Michael Caine remained in their positions, while Gary Oldman moved up to third billing. Anne Hathaway (Catwoman) took fourth billing, while Tom Hardy (Bane) was fifth.

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

For 2016’s Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, as the movie’s title suggested Ben Affleck (Batman) was billed first and Henry Cavill (Superman) was billed second. This was followed by Amy Adams (Lois Lane) in third, Jesse Eisenberg (Lex Luthor) in fourth, and Diane Lane (Martha Kent) in fifth.

Justice League (2017)

For the team-up movie, Justice League, the top three spots went to Ben Affleck, Henry Cavill, and Amy Adams, while Gal Gadot (Wonder Woman) was billed fourth, and Ezra Miller (The Flash) was billed fifth.

The Batman (2022)

And finally, for 2022’s The Batman, Robert Pattinson (Batman) took top billing, while Zoë Kravitz (Catwoman) was billed second, Paul Dano (Riddler) was third, and Jeffrey Wright (Jim Gordon) fourth. John Turturro (Carmine Falcone) was fifth, with Peter Sarsgaard (Gil Colson) sixth, and Barry Keoghan (Joker) seventh.

Andy Serkis (Alfred) and Colin Farrell (Penguin) took the eighth and ninth places, which may seem a little odd given their high profile, but the position of these credits was actually viewed as being a little bit more prestigious. The way the actors were credited on the film was as follows:

“with Andy Serkis and Colin Farrell”.

When actors appear near the end of the main billing, but are listed as “with…” or “and…”, it means they are actors of note. These particular on-screen credits mean the actors are important to the film, and audiences should be aware of their involvement in the movie.

The “with…” and “and…” credits are usually negotiated by an actor’s agent, before the actor signs up for the movie. If the agents know their clients won’t get top billing, they may push for this type of credit to highlight the actor’s significance in the picture instead.

And now you know.

So, when it comes to Batman movies, while the acting playing Batman usually gets to take the lead credit on the film, this is not always guaranteed. If you have big stars like Jack Nicholson or Arnold Schwarzenegger in your film, then a bit of reshuffling may take place.

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Thank you for stopping by I’ll Get Drive-Thru to read this post about the Batman movies. For more posts, be sure to check out the recommended reads below.

Alex is the editor and writer of I’ll Get Drive-Thru – a blog which specialises in all things related to Batman and DC Comics. After graduating with a degree in film & television studies, Alex studied journalism, before acquiring NCTJ accreditation. Prior to creating I’ll Get Drive-Thru, Alex was a magazine editor, a senior copywriter, and a freelance writer. He is now, and always has been, a Bat-fan!