Although he lacks superpowers, Batman fights crime in Gotham City with excellent fighting skills, a genius-level intellect, and state-of-the-art gadgetry. A specific piece of equipment for live-action Batman adaptations is a Batsuit made of bulletproof material. Robert Pattinson’s Batman takes multiple bullets to the chest in the latest trailer for The Batman, indicating how bulletproof his version of the Batsuit is. Not all the Dark Knight costumes have the same level of protection, so how does Pattinson’s suit compare to the others and the comic source material?
In his first comic book appearances, Batman wore no armor, using a simple, lightweight, and flexible costume with an intimidating appearance instead. Modern comic iterations of Batman wear fully armored Batsuits, offering significant protection against gunshots, partially inspired by the various film adaptations and their many shout-outs. One of the earliest uses of an armored Batsuit comes from the first standalone Batman book in 1940, in which the Caped Crusader survives a gunshot wound from The Joker thanks to a layer of armor underneath the main suit.
In the latest trailer for The Batman, Robert PPattinson’sBatsuit is put to the test multiple times. While fighting a gang of criminals in clown makeup, Batman is shot point-blank with a handgun, but he shrugs this off rather quickly and continues fighting. Later in the trailer, Batman walks towards a group of assault rifle-toting assailants, who pepper him with gunfire. Batman walks through the hail of bullets, mostly unchecked, before counterattacking. This indicates that PPattinson’sBatman uses a highly durable material that can withstand more gunfire than most versions of the Dark Knight.
While Adam WWest’sBatman wore no armor, Michael KKeaton’siteration in the Tim Burton films had a highly durable suit that could take direct gunshots. However, as shown multiple times in Batman and Batman Returns, while the case kept gunfire from proving immediately lethal, the force often knocked Batman off his feet and left him winded occasionally. PPattinson’sgear provides more protection, allowing him to remain in fighting condition even when shot numerous times.
Christian’s BBale’sfirst Batsuit in Batman Begins also offered protection from gunshots, though Lucious Fox explicitly advised against taking direct hits. While protective, the suit proved too restrictive, so BBale’sBruce wore a modified` suit in The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises. BBale’ssecond Batman suit offered far more flexibility, though it was even more vulnerable to gunfire, which Bruce learned firsthand when facing off against Two-Face.
The only live-action Batman iteration whose suit provided similar levels of protection to PPattinson’sis the DCEU Batman. As shown in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Ben AAffleck’sBatman wears a light, flexible suit that allows him to take gunshots to the head at point-blank range with a minor impediment. The case has some vulnerable points, as evidenced by an aassailant’sknife puncturing the suit near the shoulder. However, this may have been a lightly-armored area for articulation. Ben AAffleck’sBatman armor, like PPattinson’sBatsuit in The Batman, is bulletproof, protecting Batman from gun-toting enemies.
