With rumors of Batman 2 entering production later this month, you might be just as excited as we are to jump into a full Batman rewatch. Despite every reader’s likely familiarity with all things Dark Knight, we’d also say don’t underestimate the power of the right watch order. And like it or not, things get a little foggy the further back you go before the Nolan trilogy. Whether you’re brand-new to the Dark Knight’s films or have been a fan since the 1966 classic, here’s the best Batman movie watch order for the ultimate viewing experience.

What’s the best order to watch the Batman movies in 2026?

For this list, we’ve only included the live-action films, though we do want to give a special nod to some of the best animated Batman movies: Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993), Batman: The Long Halloween Part One (2021), Batman: The Long Halloween Part Two (2021), and of course, The Lego Batman Movie (2017). The latter currently holds the second-highest Rotten Tomatoes score among widely released Batman films, just behind The Dark Knight.

Whatever order you decide to watch the films in — and whichever Batman movies you choose, live-action or animated — we always recommend going by release date. Not only does this let you experience the movies as audiences did at the time, but it can also quickly become confusing to watch in strict chronological order, especially given the franchise’s multiple eras and overlapping continuities.

The Original Batman

Batman: The Movie (1966)

Directed by Leslie Martinson after the hit television series, Batman: The Movie brings our caped hero (Adam West) and sidekick Robin (Burt Ward) to the big screen. This family-friendly adventure has Batman and Robin facing off against a team-up of their greatest foes, including the Joker, Penguin, Riddler, and Catwoman. The fiendish foursome join forces in a plot to take over the world, using a secret invention that can dehydrate humans into dust.

True to its 1960s roots, the film is packed with colorful camp, wild gadgets like the Batmobile, Batcopter, and utility belts, and plenty of tongue-in-cheek fun. It’s pure Silver Age comic book energy at its peak and is still a blast to watch.

The Burton & Schumacher Era

Batman (1989)

It took a while for the franchise to relaunch under Tim Burton’s guidance, which steered the tone away from superhero comic heroism toward everything we now know Tim Burton for — heavy on style, a tonally creepy atmosphere, and a Danny Elfman soundtrack. Michael Keaton was not a popular choice to star as Bruce Wayne at the time, as many felt he couldn’t handle the role. But he proved them wrong in his role as Bruce Wayne, a wealthy industrialist who secretly fights crime as Batman. And of course, the iconic Jack Nicholson delivers a legendary performance as the Joker.

The story follows Gotham City descending into chaos after mob enforcer Jack Napier falls into a vat of chemicals during a confrontation with Batman, transforming him into the maniacal Joker. Seeking control of Gotham, the Joker unleashes terror with his deadly “Smilex” toxin, which causes victims to die laughing. Meanwhile, Bruce struggles to balance his double life as he develops a relationship with photojournalist Vicki Vale (Kim Basinger). Everything leads to a dramatic showdown in Gotham Cathedral.

Batman Returns (1992)

After the success of the 1989 relaunch, Batman Returns brings us a terrifying Danny DeVito as the Penguin and an absolutely drop-dead stunning Catwoman in Michelle Pfeiffer. And of course, Michael Keaton is back in this darker, weirder sequel that follows Penguin’s attempt to enter Gotham’s elite society while secretly plotting revenge on the city that abandoned him. Without giving too much away, the Penguin was a “deformed” baby raised by penguins in the sewers. Why are there penguins in the sewers? Don’t ask, there’s no good answer.

Teaming up with corrupt businessman Max Shreck (Christopher Walken), Penguin schemes to kidnap Gotham’s firstborn sons. In addition to this Batman vs. Penguin plot, we also get Selina Kyle’s transformation story: left for dead by Shreck, she reinvents herself as Catwoman, becoming both an ally and an enemy to Batman.

Batman Forever (1995)

After Tim Burton stepped down following Batman Returns, Joel Schumacher took over. This led to significant changes in Batman’s vision, which in turn prompted Michael Keaton to step out and Val Kilmer to step in. This would be Kilmer’s only film as Batman, reportedly due to conflicts during filming. Apparently, he didn’t even read the script and took the role simply because he loved the comics as a kid. Can’t say most of us would do much different, but just a little fun trivia.

As for the plot, Batman Forever goes much lighter than Tim Burton’s films. It even verges on goofy at times. Particularly when an unhinged scientist, played by the movie-saving Jim Carrey, selects his villain persona and costume on the computer. Alongside Carrey’s Edward Nygma, the story introduces Harvey Dent as Two-Face, played by Tommy Lee Jones. Both villains have twisted plans to take over Gotham, forcing Batman to confront their schemes while also juggling the mystery of a new love interest, Dr. Chase Meridian (Nicole Kidman).

Batman & Robin (1997)

With Val Kilmer out, George Clooney dons the cape. The last film in this era, Joel Schumacher returns as director for the campiest, neon-bright entry in the franchise. Yes, Batman: The Movie (1966) had camp, but it knew what it was doing. Sadly, this one doesn’t.

Gotham is in chaos as two villains — Mr. Freeze (Arnold Schwarzenegger), who wants to freeze the world to save his terminally ill wife, and Poison Ivy (Uma Thurman), a seductive eco-terrorist — team up to take over the city. Despite a star-studded cast that included Thurman and Schwarzenegger, as well as Chris O’Donnell as Robin, Alicia Silverstone as Batgirl, Michael Gough as Alfred, and Pat Hingle as Commissioner Gordon, the film is often considered the weakest of all Batman movies. We’re talking 11% on Rotten Tomatoes. Ouch. Too much neon, too many one-line zingers, and way too many icy gimmicks.

Christopher Nolan era

Batman Begins (2005) 

Moving forward to the start of the era that would redefine superhero movies, Batman Begins was the official relaunch of the franchise under Christopher Nolan’s direction. This reboot gave the film a darker, more realistic take on Gotham and the Dark Knight’s origins. Christian Bale stars as Bruce Wayne, a wealthy orphan traumatized by witnessing his parents’ murder. Struggling with fear and a desire for justice, Bruce travels the world, training with the League of Shadows under Ra’s al Ghul (Liam Neeson). 

Bruce returns to Gotham, where he adopts the mantle of Batman to fight crime without losing his moral compass. He faces the corrupt Dr. Jonathan Crane, aka Scarecrow (played by the brilliant Cillian Murphy), who uses a fear-inducing toxin to terrorize the city. With a fantastic supporting ensemble, including Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox, Michael Caine as Alfred, and Tom Wilkinson as Carmine Falcone, Batman Begins was a strong start to an unforgettable trilogy.

The Dark Knight (2008) 

The Dark Knight is, and will forever be, the best Batman movie ever. Directed by Christopher Nolan from a screenplay he co-wrote with his brother Jonathan Nolan, The Dark Knight introduces a new villain in the form of the Joker, played by an absolutely unhinged Heath Ledger.

Unlike typical villains, the Joker isn’t motivated by money or power. He’s an anarchist who wants to prove that even the most moral people can be corrupted. Batman teams up with Lt. James Gordon (Gary Oldman) and newly elected district attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) to dismantle organized crime, but the Joker’s schemes push Gotham, and Batman himself, into moral and ethical crises. The Joker kidnaps Dent and Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal), forcing Batman to make an impossible choice that ultimately leads to Dent’s transformation into the vengeful Two-Face.

In addition to the legendary, violent pencil scene, The Dark Knight famously presents a real trolley-problem dilemma involving passengers on two ferries. It also tackles the issue of mass surveillance: using Lucius Fox’s technology, Batman taps into cellphones to save the day — a significant ethical conflict, and one that’s clearly portrayed as a tool that shouldn’t be used, even for good. Fun fact: the film came out just a few years after reports of the NSA secretly monitoring Americans’ phones. Whether intended or not, there’s more than a little political commentary woven into Gotham.

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

The Dark Knight Rises concludes Christopher Nolan’s epic Dark Knight Trilogy with Gotham facing its biggest threat yet. Eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, Bruce Wayne has retired as Batman. He’s generally living as a recluse while Gotham appears to have some semblance of peace under Harvey Dent’s legacy.

The peace shatters when Bane (Tom Hardy) arrives to dismantle Gotham both physically and morally. Bane, who is excellent at the whole terrorism thing, orchestrates a citywide siege, isolating Gotham from the outside world. As the city descends into chaos, Bruce must overcome crippling injuries, his own doubts, and the rise of a new villain. Once again, he takes on the role of the caped crusader. Also worth mentioning in this plot summary is that Anne Hathaway plays a morally ambiguous Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman, who goes from working for Bane to helping Bruce fight for the city’s survival. 

Zack Snyder’s DC Universe

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)

Though not the first film in the Snyderverse — that would be Man of Steel (2013) — Batman v Superman is Batman’s first entry. Following the destructive battle in Metropolis, Batman (Ben Affleck) becomes increasingly disillusioned with Superman (Henry Cavill), viewing him as a threat to humanity and believing it’s up to him to bring Superman to justice.

Aside from Batman’s personal opinions, Lex Luthor’s (Jesse Eisenberg) scheming only deepens the rift between the two heroes. This all leads to a showdown where Batman absolutely devastates Superman. But, of course, while the heroes are busy fighting each other, Luthor is secretly working on an even bigger monster that could destroy the world. Meanwhile, Lois Lane (Amy Adams) is trying to uncover Luthor’s plans, and Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot) makes her first cinematic appearance, joining the fray and hinting at the larger team-up to come.

Justice League (2017)

The Justice League was, sadly, a bit of a misfire due to a leadership change during post-production. Following a personal tragedy and a studio conflict after Batman v Superman, Zack Snyder stepped down as director, and Joss Whedon stepped in. What resulted was a Whedonified take on a film that was supposed to follow Snyder’s vision. Simply put, the alignment feels very, very off.

Following Superman’s death in Batman v Superman, Batman (Ben Affleck) teams up with Diana, Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), to assemble a team made up of DC’s most iconic heroes to face an apocalyptic threat. The heroes include The Flash (Ezra Miller), Cyborg (Ray Fisher), and Aquaman (Jason Momoa). Together, they confront Steppenwolf, a powerful alien warlord who’s planning to unite three ancient Mother Boxes to terraform Earth into a new Apokolips.

Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)

Fortunately, Zack Snyder got another chance to release the film the way he originally intended. With a bit of help from fan demand and a viral campaign (#ReleaseTheSnyderCut), HBO — part of Warner Bros.’ parent company — released the nearly four-hour-long director’s cut.

While the core plot remains the same, the structure, pacing, and key scenes that made the 2017 version feel disjointed were restored and reworked. This version goes much darker and expands on character lore. It actually makes sense why characters do what they do, which was a big part of the problem. Scenes that were previously cut or altered are fully realized here. The Whedon witticisms are removed, and generally speaking, this version finally feels like the epic superhero team-up Snyder envisioned.

Matt Reeves’ Standalone Universe

The Batman (2022)

Lastly, we enter the Matt Reeves universe, starting with The Batman, which reboots the franchise with a darker, mystery-focused take on Gotham and the Dark Knight. Robert Pattinson stars as Bruce Wayne early in his vigilante career. It doesn’t go full Detective Batman, but there’s enough prowling around crime scenes and working on ciphers a la Zodiac to satisfy the mystery buffs. The film was a box-office hit, grossing over $770 million worldwide.

The story centers on a serial killer known as the Riddler (Paul Dano), who targets Gotham’s elite with cryptic messages and a trail of murders exposing deep-seated corruption. Batman teams up with Lieutenant James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) and Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz) to uncover the conspiracy.

Batman 2 (rumored 2027)

There isn’t much to write about since we don’t have much information. But the sequel, again directed by Matt Reeves, is set to begin filming in London in 2026. Production rumors point to cameras rolling later this month, with a theatrical release in 2027 if we’re lucky. Batman 2 is expected to continue Robert Pattinson’s darker, detective-focused take on the Dark Knight. But plot details are still under wraps, and any public news of it is most likely just rumors.