One of the strangest things that’s happened to Batman in recent cinematic adaptations is that he’s developed a propensity to kill — a jump from the nonlethal Batman of the comic books. Batman not killing people and not using guns is part of the character’s mythology; it’s been rooted deep in his psyche since he witnessed his parents’ murder as a child. It’s also a way to tell a story about a man who must train to be better than criminals with guns.
Batman doesn’t kill. Here are the 21 times Batman kills someone in Batman v Superman.
Alex Abad-Santos is a senior correspondent who explains what society obsesses over, from Marvel and movies to fitness and skin care. He came to Vox in 2014. Prior to that, he worked at The Atlantic.
To the latter point: Batman is the most skilled and strategic hero in the DC Comics universe. Having him resort to using guns to blow people to bits would nullify his origin story. That’s just one reason the recent Batman v Superman is such a controversial Batman movie — it completely ignores his history and sees him killing folks left and right.
To make this point very clear, YouTuber Mr. Sunday Movies spliced together all the clips from Batman v Superman (which was released on on Digital HD last week) that feature Batman (Ben Affleck) killing people. The total count is 21, not including the weird dream sequence where he offs a few more.
It’s unclear whether Batman’s death toll will rise in the upcoming Justice League movie.
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