It's no secret that Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice polarized fans when it hit theaters in March. Some audiences adored Zack Snyder's creative vision for the DCEU, while others felt that many of the choices seemed out of character for these heroes. One of the single most divisive issues came in Batfleck's willingness to kill during his crime fighting outings, and even iconic Batman actor Kevin Conroy recently spoke out against such a decision.
The legendary Dark Knight voice actor recently spoke to IGN and voiced his concern over Batman's lethal tendencies in Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice. Kevin Conroy refers to the act of killing criminals as a "line" that Batman crosses multiple times throughout the course of the film, and it's a creative choice that doesn't sit well with him. He elaborated:
In the most recent live action movie, that seems to have been a line that was crossed and it's not one I'm particularly comfortable with.
Kevin Conroy preceded this comment by admitting that he believes there's certainly ample room for creative license with the iconic DC vigilante, but he remains resolute in the opinion that murder simply shouldn't appear on his resume. Many fans consider Conroy the definitive Batman, so it's hard to argue against his own take on the hero; the man simply knows what he's talking about.
Some fans stand by Zack Snyder's decision by citing the idea that Batman did at one point kill in his publication history, and the Batman in Batman V Superman has utterly lost his way. We watch him kill in this film, but by the time he realizes that Superman (Henry Cavill) is not his enemy, he reforms his ways and finds redemption. They also take it upon themselves to point out that almost every other silver screen Batman has (directly or indirectly) killed during their on-screen tenures, and as such this shouldn't necessarily matter.
With that in mind, we present you with a supercut of the Bat murders caused by pre-Affleck Batmen:
However, other fans have noted that Batman should never, and under no circumstances, take a life. He may have killed in his earliest stories, but his refusal to permanently put down criminals has become a central facet of the character's modern identity. Even at his darkest, most Frank Miller self in the comics, he still never went all the way and killed anyone. Sure, he may have snapped Joker's neck in The Dark Knight Returns, but the clown finished himself off in the end. There's a difference.
Like so many fanboy arguments, there's simply no right or wrong answer in this debate. Some fans enjoyed Snyder's more extreme take on the character, while others (Kevin Conroy included) found his willingness to kill far too out of character. Let us know what you think in the comments section below to keep this conversation alive!
