 What martial arts does Batman know? If you are a martial arts enthusiast or a Batman fan, or both, then we're gonna have some fun with this one. Let's talk about it. Now I need to preface this episode by saying, I absolutely love Batman. Growing up, him and Superman are my favorite, and yes, it's possible to love both. Now with that being said, I'm gonna start this episode by throwing a little bit of shade at the Dark Knight. When the topic of martial arts of Batman comes up, I usually see one of two general answers. What kind of martial arts does Batman know? Batman has mastered all martial arts. Or Batman knows 127 martial arts. Okay, first of all, 127 martial arts is a really random number. And no, it's not the total number of arts that are out there. There are either way more than that, or way less, depending on where you draw that line. But no, Batman does not know all martial arts. That's lame, and quite honestly, boring. Batman is far more interesting when he makes choices and deliberate tactical decisions. His fighting style would not be any different than that. It's far more intriguing to wonder which fighting systems he'd invest his time into, or what he would cherry pick from other systems to make his own fighting method. So in this episode, we're going to analyze which fighting styles Batman has learned, and we're gonna do this in the context of the live-action films. There are way too many comics, movies, cartoons, and games to look at unless we made this a four-hour episode. So we're sticking to the live-action films since we can see real people performing real movements. Our breakdown will focus on the Burton-verse and Schumacher-verse, which technically are in the same continuity. Then we're gonna look at the Nolan-verse Batman, followed by the Ben Affleck, the DCEU Batman, and concluding with the Pattinson, THE Batman. And as it's a bonus at the end, I'm gonna give you my opinion on which Batman I think I could take, and which one of these I think would reign Champion Supreme of them all. So the Michael Keaton Batman is an interesting one to start with. First, we're not treated to any true origin or training like we see in the Dark Knight trilogy, and he doesn't really refer to any art or fighting style. So where do we go first? Well, first I think we should establish the art, or rather, discipline that they all share. Ninjutsu. Now whether that means that it's an art that identifies as Ninjutsu, or we're talking about the cultural slash tactical strategy that the ninja embody. I think that we can all pretty much agree that for all intents and purposes Batman is a ninja. He's stealthy, goes after and retrieves targets, is deadly in combat, and employs smoke bombs, shurikens, blow darts, and grappling hooks. Now this motif goes across pretty much all versions of the Dark Knight, so we're gonna add this as a universal art to the list of disciplines. After that, we're gonna take a look at Dave Lee, the man performing all the action under the cowl. Now there were a few stuntmen of use for Michael Keaton, but Dave Lee did all his fight scenes, and his fighting history is tremendous. He has his experience in a Screama, Shotokan, Wing Chun, Shaolin Kung Fu, Jiao Pai Kung Fu, White Crane Kung Fu, Leopard Kung Fu, Snake Kung Fu, Taekwondo, Boi Tai, Jujitsu, Judo, Hop Kundo, Southern Dragon Style Kung Fu, Aikido, Tai Chi, Salat, and Kickboxing. So which of these does the Michael Keaton Batman actually know? And I don't think it's fair to just copy and paste the stuntman's experience with the Batman, but according to Dave Lee himself in various interviews, he viewed Batman as a character that would be well-versed in fighting tactics, but also efficiency. He viewed Batman as someone that when he hits you, he can put you down. He engages with multiple people, and he doesn't want to spend time tied up with one attacker, so he employs a super efficient hit you and keep on moving philosophy. As for the fighting style itself, Lee said that he crafted the streamlined fighting style that was a bit of an amalgamation of his own experiences, but he relied a lot on his Malaysian art of Hop Kundo. Now, watching some of the fight scenes, however, you can see a lot of linear block and counter moves that are customary to many karate systems, along with some solid kicks, so we can kind of see a bit of his Shodokan and Taekwondo shining through as well. It has also been suggested to Fan Theory that Batman has some experience in the screamer. And as evidence in this alleyway fight scene, Batman seems to be able to anticipate the trajectory of bladed weapons in close combat. So I like that. We're going to add that to the list. So the Michael Keaton Batman seems to be a mix of many fighting styles with strong ties to Hop Kundo, Taekwondo, karate, a screamer, and of course, ninjutsu. Now, the Joe Schumacher Batman, while existing in the same universe and technically we're supposed to be the same person as Michael Keaton, they skew on a slightly different martial path. Hey, Dojo fans. We are excited to share our new colors of combat t-shirt collection with all of you that we love this channel and we love our community and we want to keep producing content, but we do need help. So instead of getting sponsors for VPNs or Shadow Warrior, Legend, Battle League games or novel manscaping products, we felt we wanted to offer you something a little bit better. This new collection features 22 designs of multiple martial arts and explosive colorful displays so that you can represent your in style. We really appreciate all of you. And if you use the code color 2023, you can get 10 percent off of each purchase until the end of June. Now, this code is good for both this collection as well as our previous For Father series. Oh, and also, if you send us pictures of you in your shirts, we'll share them to our social media feeds. Thank you all so much for your support and now back to the video. So for Batman Forever, we have Val Kilmer stepping into the role of the Dark Knight. Now, his fights were performed by Alex Daniels, although I was not able to really find much of his background in regard to martial arts experience, so we're going to have to go by performance instead. Kilmer's Batman is more acrobatic and fluid than Keaton's was. Keaton's fights with multiple attackers was more one on one. You know, knock this guy down, now turn to face this guy. Kilmer, on the other hand, manipulates one while striking another. And we can see a little more choreography went into this film and into these shots, which might have been the result of a slightly more flexible batsuit. But we see several joint locks, flips, throws, takedowns and sometimes while striking another opponent. Now, this heavily suggests that Batman has some sort of jujitsu or hapkudomix. Throw this in with some basic karate and that pretty much seems to match. Interestingly, though, in real life, Val Kilmer is a Wing Chun practitioner. Now, this, of course, doesn't mean that Batman automatically knows Wing Chun. However, there is a deleted scene from Batman Forever where Bruce Wayne has a wooden dummy in his training room. And we see Dick Grayson angry and beating on it incorrectly with poor technique, of course. But though the presence of this wooden dummy would suggest that perhaps this Batman may practice the art. So the judges are going to allow it. Though to be honest, neither Dick Grayson or Bruce really seemed to understand how to properly use the wooden dummy. Now, when it comes to Batman and Robin's George Clooney's outfit, just like the film itself, it doesn't really add a whole lot. Fights are much more rudimentary with blander choreography. There aren't a lot, there aren't a lot to really pull from in terms of moves more than we've already covered. Now, with that being said, George Clooney's fighting doubles were Brad Martin, a Taekwondo master, and the legendary Chris Casamasa, ninth-degree black belt and red dragon karate, and best known for his role as Scorpion in a 1995 film Mortal Kombat. Now, Red Dragon was founded by his father, Louis, and it's an American mixture of many different martial arts and karate systems put together. So for this specific four-film continuity of Batman, we'll say his training is a mixture of hapkundo, taekwondo, shuntokan karate, red dragon karate, jujitsu, eskrema, wengchun, and of course, ninjitsu. Oh, and I guess hockey. Now, this one is a little bit easier to determine. First of all, we have three films produced as one cohesive unit, so we have a consistent tone and performance between them. Additionally, there's been a lot more behind-the-scenes coverage of this and how the fighting styles were developed. First and foremost, like we established previously, ninjitsu is a major part of this fighting tactics, and these films placed great emphasis on that training. Now, as far as the hand-to-hand combat goes, it's likely a blend of different arts just like the other Batman. However, the KC Fighting Method is the standout system here. The KC Fighting Method, or KFM, was founded in 1980 by Spanish martial artist, Husto Diegoz. Now, the system's co-founder, Andy Norman, split off and created his own system of defense lab. KC is a brutal, close-quarter combat system that utilizes blunt, short-range strikes, particularly the knees and the elbows. They felt that this would be more useful and make sense for Batman. Close range, devastating strikes, fluid enough to turn to face additional attackers. Now, the camera placement in the first film is a little bit too close to make out much of the action, but with the second and the third film, we can see much more of KC's flavor. Now, while Christian Bale did many of the stunts himself, the majority of the fight work was performed by stuntman Buster Reeves. Two Jitsu. Okay, and now for Batfleck. This one is interesting because there have been several breakdown videos on his fighting style and Batman v Superman's warehouse scene alone, there is a ton of stuff to look at. Other than the Jitsu, which we've already established as Universal, it is suggested that Batman has a depth chart that includes Boxing, Krav Maga, Judo and Taekwondo, and Muay Thai. Now, this comes from a mixture of online sources, but I think that's a fair starting place. However, I have a few minor disagreements. I will agree with the Boxing, Judo and Muay Thai. Boxing just makes sense. It's one of the most foundational striking arts there is and it's evident in a lot of his footwork and how well he can read and slip a punch. However, his counter punches, they don't look like boxing strikes. They have much more range and extension to them and they're more angular, looking more like something out of Muay Thai or something you see in the MMA ring. And that's not entirely inappropriate. In an interview, Ben Affleck himself said that he was inspired by Conor McGregor as he prepared for this film role. To quote, he said, And I agree with that. His Batman is a brawler. His fighting is gritty and brutal. There's a heavy tactical flair to it which would fall in line with the Krav Maga, but to me personally, the strikes, counter and stand-up grappling seems to have more of a salat flavor to them. Now salat is also extremely smooth flowing between attackers hitting close and long range, high and low. Now Ben Affleck does adopt a few long deep stances often which is often seen in Japanese karate but you can also find low stances in salat as well. Then we have the weapons. He also seems to be very familiar with firearms and weaponry, not just deflecting the disarming but using them as well. So upon looking up his fighting double, we have Richard Centrone, who is an instructor under martial arts legend, Dan Inosanto in Jitkundo and Eskima. He also has extensive experience in Muay Thai, Jujitsu and Salat. And upon his second look, we can see some elements of Jitkundo in there as well. So the Batfleck version of the Dark Knight, I would say is a mixture of boxing, Jujitsu, Muay Thai, Jitkundo, Eskima, some Krav Maga but in my personal opinion, I think a little bit more Salat. And finally we come to the Matt Reeves Batman portrayed by Robert Pattinson. Now there is one standout fact in this film. This time around, the star of the film did the fights himself. That's right, Robert Pattinson performed his own fight scenes. His stunt double, Rob Alonso, performed many of the more dangerous actions in the film but Alonso himself has confirmed that it was Pattinson doing the combat. Robert Pattinson has been training in the martial arts since he was six years old and he underwent a pretty intense training regimen to prepare for his prowl in the cowl. He went under the tutelage of Regan Machado, eighth degree black belt in Brazilian Jujitsu. Now Machado trained Pattinson for about three months prior to filming and this is what he said of the actor. I focus on teaching the knowledge first. It's a lot of repetitions of movements but Rob learned it very fast. He's the most focused person. He's very quiet and serious and it took some time for him to open up but pretty soon he did. I've never met a guy so nice, so humble and respectful. And that wasn't all either. Stunt double Alonso also trained Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz in various combat arts to prepare for the film. In another interview, he also said, the goal of fight training with Rob Pattinson was to allow the Jeopardy to come in much closer than he's used to in order to eliminate anticipatory movement and to heighten his close proximity reactivity. With this as a primary goal, we trained in the Filipino martial arts, Salat, Muay Thai, Jeet Kune Do, Boxing and Kickboxing. This is not a step too far past Ben Affleck's version of the bat. You know, these arts make sense for the context in which they are used and as a result, we get an efficient, agile Batman fueled by vengeance. So this is quite a mix of influences and if you were to pull out all these movies together and add all the arts to the dark nights and their fight doubles, you might actually add up to 127. It's all sand corrected. Now, which one of these cape crusaders would come out on top if pitted against each other? That's a hot question and I'm sure my answer is going to different than a lot of you out there, but I've seen a lot of people online debate this and a surprising amount of fans seemed to believe that the George Clooney Batman would come out on top based on being able to take out Bane easily and his physics, the fine acrobatic skills, but let's be honest, this Bane wasn't exactly Gotham's reckoning. Personally, for me, I'm going to have to place my chips on Batfleck. Now, while his movies are my least favorite of the Batman films, you pin them against any of the Burton and Schumacher Batman's and I think he blows right through them. Kilmer and Clooney are just too showing flashy and Keaton is too precise and calculated. Batfleck is just raw power and pure combat discipline. He's also a grizzled veteran compared to all of them. His version of the Batman has had a lot of experience even to the point of reaching retirement. Both Christian Bale and Robert Pattinson's counterparts are young in comparison. Pattinson, the Batman, is supposed to be in his second year as the Bat and Christian Bale, well, his Batman was really only active for about one year before going into hiding and coming back basically handicapped eight years later. I have to give it to Affleck for the win, but Bale will be a close second, but his hesitancy to kill, which Batfleck has no qualms about, just falls short of the Berserker mode executed by Mawbat. Now, which Batman do I think I could take? If I have to be fair, I'm pretty sure I could take the one that we saw in the Dark Knight. No, not this one. This one, ha ha, hockey pads. I like my chances against him. So that's our look at the martial arts of Batman. I would love to see all of you continue this discussion down below in the comments. Do you agree with me? Or are there arts you think I missed? Now, the next discussion would be how realistic is it for him to fight in those bassoons anyway? How do costumes in general affect the martial arts performance? Click right here and let's get into it. Oh.