“Here’s a simplified guide for all the essential Batman animated movies in order.”
Batman, as the central figure of the DC Universe, plays an essential role in the stories of comic books, live-action films, and animated television series. The caped crusader is constantly confronted with one threat after another, only to discover that Gotham has been compromised by criminals all along, but he always manages to piece everything together and put an end to everything.
While live-action Batman films like The Dark Knight trilogy, Batman vs. Superman, and Matt Reeves’ The Batman are fantastic adaptations, animated films have long shown the Gotham Knight in a different way. So it’s no surprise that you want to see these incredible films. With that in mind, we’ve put up the finest guide to watching all Batman Animated Movies in order.
Batman Animated Movies in Release Order
Apparently, Batman animated films have been popular since the early 1990s, with the first feature, Batman: Mask of the Phantom, released in 1993. However, many of their earlier versions are stand-alone films that do not require you to watch them in order to connect with the main story. So, here’s the release order for the essential movies.
- Batman: Gotham Knight (2008)
- Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009)
- Batman: Under the Red Hood (2010)
- Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010)
- Batman: Year One (2011)
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part 1 (2012)
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part 2 (2013)
- Son of Batman (2014)
- Batman: Assault on Arkham (2014)
- Batman vs. Robin (2015)
- Batman: Bad Blood (2016)
- Batman: The Killing Joke (2016)
- Batman and Harley Quinn (2017)
- Batman: Gotham by Gaslight (2018)
- Batman: Hush (2019)
- Batman: The Long Halloween Part 1 (2021)
- Batman: The Long Halloween Part 2 (2021)
- Batman: Soul of the Dragon (2021)
- Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons (2022)
- Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham (2023)
Batman Animated Movies in Chronological Order
Unlike the release order, which is relatively simple because we can just refer to release dates and begin with the oldest one. However, the chronological timeline is slightly challenging because, rather than each Batman film having a connection to one another, they are divided into various production universes, such as the Nolanverse and the Arkhamverse. So, here’s a rundown of the Batman animated movies in Chronological order.
Nolanverse:
- Batman: Gotham Knight (2008)
Superman/Batman:
- Superman/Batman: Public Enemies (2009)
- Superman/Batman: Apocalypse (2010)
Dark Knight Returns:
- Batman: Year One (2011) – short film
- DC Showcase: Catwoman (2011) – short films
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part 1 (2012)
- Batman: The Dark Knight Returns Part 2 (2013)
Arkhamverse:
- Batman: Assault on Arkham (2014)
DCAMU (DC Animated Movie Universe):
- Son of Batman (2014)
- Batman vs. Robin (2015)
- Batman: Bad Blood (2016)
DCAU (DC Animated Universe):
- Batman and Harley Quinn (2017)
Tomorrowverse:
- Batman: The Long Halloween, Part One (2021)
- Batman: The Long Halloween, Part Two (2021)
As stated before, the several universes in which the films are set are exhaustingly convoluted. However, rather than racking your brains to figure out the chronological order, you can go through the universes one at a time without skipping ahead to the next part.
This would provide you with a clear understanding of how the universes functioned, as well as a unique experience when watching various Batman films. After you’ve seen all of these films, the standalone films are worth seeing, even if they have nothing to do with any of these universes.
Batman Standalone Films:
- Batman: Under the Hood (2010)
- Batman: The Killing Joke (2016)
- Batman: Gotham by Gaslight (2018)
- Batman: Soul of the Dragon (2021)
- Batman and Superman: Battle of the Super Sons (2022)
- Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham (2023)
What Order Should I Watch the Batman Animated Movies?
As Batman movies are an outlier in the DC Universe, both release and chronological orders are recommended. However, since all of these films are divided into various universes, we strongly advise you to watch them in chronological order to avoid getting confused by independent movies.
This will allow you to finish the main storylines faster and give you more time to explore the non-canon movies later. In any case, starting with Nolanverse and ending with Tomorrowverse, which is still in development and has a few other Justice League movies in its collection, should make navigating through the chronological order easier.
Which Batman Animated Movies are Connected?
While this is a difficult question to answer, given the older films’ ties to other DC animated series, it shouldn’t be too complex. If you disregard the earlier films from the 1990s, which should be watched in their own right in connection to the DC animated series, every universe we described above connects its movies quite effectively.
So, to avoid missing their connection, simply follow the chronological order. When you see all of the other DC animated movies, even the Justice League ones, you’ll realize that the continuity isn’t as bad as we make it out to be.
Where to Watch Batman Animated Movies?
Given how Batman animated movies are spread across multiple universes, it may not be easy to find a single place to view all of these movies. However, most of these films, including Batman: Under the Red Hood, Batman: Year One, The Dark Knight Returns, and many others, are available on HBO Max.
If you can’t find all of the remaining movies, we have a perfect alternative for you: rent them on Amazon and Apple TV+, or have a great quality Blu-ray for yourself to binge-watch every now and again. To make things easier for you, we’ll include a combined link that will provide you access to practically all Batman animated films.
