Why Kevin Conroy Wanted To Play Two Other Batman: The Animated Series Characters

Certain actors come to define certain roles, and that goes double for comic book movies. After 2008's "Iron Man" changed Hollywood forever and re-energized star Robert Downey Jr.'s career, the man spent the next decade convincing us all that he just is Iron Man (although Downey Jr. is now set to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as a supervillain, so he's also going to convince us he's Doctor Doom, apparently). On the DC side of things, many would say that Christopher Reeve did the same thing with his "Superman" movies, even though his final outing as the Man of Steel, 1987's "Superman IV: The Quest for Peace," became an infamous superhero movie that even Reeve regretted making.

While we're on the subject of DC, there is one man that can surely claim to rival Reeve: Kevin Conroy. The late actor inhabited the Dark Knight beginning with 1992's "Batman: The Animated Series" and went on to play the role across multiple projects, from other DC Animated Universe shows to video games and even in live-action as part of The CW's "Crisis on Infinite Earths" TV event. Conroy, who passed away in 2022, was the definitive Batman for an entire generation, and while the actor worked quite frequently outside of that role, there's no doubt it's the character for which he's best known. His pitch-perfect take on Bruce Wayne and his alter ego just simply can't be bested, which is why it's sort of funny to think that Conroy initially wanted to have a go at playing some other supporting characters in "BTAS."

"Batman: The Animated Series" didn't just boast one legendary performance, but two. Mark Hamill's Joker has become just as beloved and, for many, just as definitive as Kevin Conroy's Batman/Bruce Wayne. For Hamill, he and the Clown Prince of Crime were a perfect match, which is why he managed to land the role even though Tim Curry had already been cast as The Joker. Sadly for the "It" actor, he was deemed too scary, and Hamill just happened to have visited the "BTAS" production offices and impressed the show's creatives so much that when they needed a new voice actor, he was top of the list. Even still, Hamill almost said "no" to playing the Joker, which, considering how he came to define the role so effectively, is kind of strange to think about. Likewise, while Conroy didn't exactly say "no" to playing Batman, it seems the Juilliard grad was originally more interested in playing other characters.

In Vulture's oral history of "BTAS," Conroy recalled reading the script for the series and claimed to have been more drawn to supporting characters than to the Dark Knight himself. "When I just read the script that they sent me," he explained, "it looked to me like [supporting character] Harvey Bullock was a much more interesting character, and Commissioner Gordon, too." After this, Conroy went in to see casting director Andrea Romano. He continued, "So I went in and I said, 'Can I audition for the character roles?' And Andrea said, 'Do you understand that, if you get Batman, you'll be in every episode? Stop trying to talk us out of hiring you!'"

Of course, Conroy did get Batman and the show was all the better for it. Meanwhile, Robert Hastings landed the role of Commissioner Gordon and did a similarly stellar job as the character. But while it would have been interesting to see what Conroy did as the police commissioner, it would have been even more intriguing to see how he handled Harvey Bullock.

Detective Harvey Bullock, who would later be portrayed by Donal Logue in Fox's "Gotham," had been part of the comic books for some time before "Batman: The Animated Series" incorporated him into its "dark-deco" universe. The Gotham City Police Department detective is the second most prominent police character in "BTAS" after Commissioner Gordon and is frequently at odds with his superior, attempting to assemble an anti-Batman task force in spite of Gordon's orders not to. But while he very much started the show as a foil for Gordon, he became more nuanced as the series went on and, as such, would have been a great part for Kevin Conroy — especially in the episodes where Bullock was a main character.

"Batman: The Animated Series" stayed faithful to its comic book counterpart and honored Batman's storied comics history in many ways, mostly by adhering to the dark vision that Bob Kane and Bill Finger put to page all the way back in 1939. But adapting 1992's "Detective Comics #651" showed that the series could also draw from contemporary sources while keeping its all-important tone intact. The episode titled "A Bullet for Bullock" saw Batman investigate after somebody tries to kill the detective, with the Dark Knight ultimately discovering that it was the handiwork of Bullock's own landlord.

Bullock was played in the series by Robert Costanzo, who went on to voice the character in multiple DCAU projects. While Constanzo and his New York accent were a great fit for the role, it certainly would have been interesting to see what Conroy did with the part, especially when Bullock was front and center of specific episodes. Still, it's not as if we really missed out, considering the man ultimately delivered what many consider to be the quintessential Batman performance.