The Boys Star Jensen Ackles Is One Of The Only Actors To Play Both Batman And Robin

DC fans are debating fiercely about who should play Batman in the new DC Universe. One popular pick is Jensen Ackles, the "Supernatural" star who recently starred as Soldier Boy (an a-hole version of Captain America) on "The Boys" and is returning for prequel series "Vought Rising." 

Ackles has a feather in his cap, and it's not only that Dean Winchester on "Supernatural" was basically the Batman to his little bro Sam's (Jared Padalecki) Dick Grayson. Ackles has already played Batman in several animated DC films, all part of a continuity called the Tomorrowverse (named for the first film, 2020's "Superman: Man of Tomorrow"). 

Ackles starred as Batman in the two-part film "Batman: The Long Halloween," adapted from Jeph Loeb and Tim Sale's beloved Batman comic mini-series. Ackles' Batman also appeared as a supporting character in "Legion of Super-Heroes," "Justice League: Warworld," and the three-part Tomorrowverse finale "Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths." 

But Ackles' involvement in Batman animation stretches back further. His first trip to Gotham City was in a superlative DC animated movie, 2010's "Batman: Under the Red Hood." He appeared as the former Robin Jason Todd, infamously murdered by the Joker in 1988 story arc "A Death in the Family." In "Under the Red Hood," Jason (Ackles) returns to life and becomes the eponymous vigilante, seeking revenge on the man who murdered him and to teach Batman (Bruce Greenwood) a lesson.

Notably, this makes Ackles one of the few actors to play Batman and one of the Robins. Another is Troy Baker, who's voiced Batman in several animated films plus two Robins: Tim Drake in the video game "Batman: Arkham City", and then (like Ackles) Jason Todd/Red Hood in the sequel "Arkham Knight." (Baker is, incidentally, also a rare actor who has played both Batman and the Joker.)

"Batman: Under the Red Hood" has been compared to another animated film, "Batman: Mask of the Phantasm," not just in quality but in narrative structure. Both films are mysteries, where someone from Bruce Wayne's past appears in Gotham City as a lethal vigilante, and the film concludes in a three-way showdown between Batman, that vigilante, and the Joker.

Both films also force Batman himself to face his regrets. "Mask of the Phantasm" goes for the Dark Knight's heart; the Phantasm is Andrea Beaumont (Dana Delany), a woman who Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy) once loved so much he almost forsook his vow to wage war against crime. "Under the Red Hood" depicts the greatest casualty in that war, and explores a dimension of Batman none of the live-action movies have yet: Batman as a father. Just look at Jason's revenge plan — he wants to make Batman kill the Joker (John DiMaggio) because it's the only way he'll believe Bruce actually loved him like a son.

Jason Todd is without a doubt Batman's greatest failure, and not just because Batman was a minute too late to save Jason from the Joker. Batman saw a troubled child, one with the same anger as himself, and tried to teach him to channel it. Instead, by making Jason into Robin, Batman gave Jason's violent urges room to grow. 

Few Batman movie scenes rival the power "Under the Red Hood" achieves in its climax, and so much of that comes down to Ackles' performance as Jason. The trembling pain and hatred in his voice, like when he calls the Joker a "pathetic pile of evil death-worshipping garbage" (one of the most precise and damning descriptions of the Joker ever) hits me like a truck every time.

"Batman: Under the Red Hood" voice director Andrea Romano said in a behind-the-scenes featurette of Ackles' casting as Jason that, "We needed to get an actor who could portray better times, and the worst of times." They chose wisely. When the Red Hood first appears (crashing a drug lords' meeting with an AK-47 and a duffle bag full of heads), he's cocky and sadistic — like a gangster Deadpool without the fourth wall breaking. 

Red Hood has the same unbothered tough guy act that Ackles sometimes uses as Dean Winchester and later as Soldier Boy. But when Jason comes face to face with Batman and the Joker, that performance cracks and the unhealed pain comes out. Romano said that a sign of a great dramatic voiceover scene is "to hear an actor fight against the emotion they're feeling." In "Under the Red Hood," Jason is (just barely) burying his sadness with anger.

Ackles looks back on his Red Hood performance fondly (if his social media is any indication), but it also made it extra surprising for him when he was cast as Batman. Speaking to EW about "Batman: The Long Halloween" in 2021, Ackles recounted:

"I come from a previous film where I voiced Red Hood. So when I got the call for this, I assumed I would be reprising that role into whatever story these guys were adapting. But then I realized I'd gotten the upgrade! I don't think they even got the whole word 'Batman' out. They were like, 'Bat-' and I was like, yes!"

But while Ackles' gruff baritone fits well as Batman, he'll always be the Red Hood first for most DC fans. Unless, of course, DC Studios President James Gunn gives him a call.