Kevin Conroy, who died at 66, was maybe the greatest performer of Batman ever :: Dancehall Reggae :: Forums

adikate954

Posted November 12, 2022 02:28 AM

Actor Kevin Conroy has died. He was 66.

Conroy voiced the Caped Crusader on Batman: The Animated Series from 1992 to 1996, as well as in 15 films, 15 animated series and two dozen video games. To several generation of fans, including mine, he simply...was Batman.

That's because Conroy understood something very fundamental about the character that no other actor to play Batman ever has:

Batman isn't a disguise. Batman is the real guy.

It's Bruce Wayne that's the put-on — the pose, the performance, the face he shows to the world.

Conroy got that. Embodied it, really. But every other actor who's slapped on the bat ears over the years inevitably adopts an overtly theatrical, affected voice when they play Batman.

For most of them, it's a whispery rasp meant to seem super-butch, super-intimidating. It's Clint Eastwood's stoic Man With No Name in black Kevlar.

There have been a couple exceptions. Adam West went big, comically stiff and stentorian: "Careful, chum! Pedestrian safety!"

Christian Bale went even harder, punishing evil-doers (and his vocal folds) with a throaty, if weirdly adenoidal roar: "SWEAR TO ME!" A bullfrog with laryngitis, over here.

But Keaton, Clooney, Kilmer, Affleck and Pattinson all Eastwood-whisper their Bat-dialogue, as if they think they can save Gotham via ASMR.

All of them see Batman as the role to play, and convince themselves they need to create a separate, menacing persona to do so.

Conroy started from a much different place. His Batman was more natural, less forced, less false. He basically used his usual speaking voice. It's something you can just sense immediately, and I think it's one reason so many of us responded to his take as deeply as we did. We could see it: He's not play-acting, he's just acting.

The creators of Batman: The Animated Series have said that's exactly what they were looking for. As they were auditioning people for Batman, actor after actor came in and did the Keaton/Eastwood whisper. It was everything they didn't want their cartoon show to be — it was cartoonish.

But when Conroy slid into the booth, he just read the lines. He took his natural voice down only slightly, and inched closer to the mic.

But it wasn't a pose, it was just him. He was cool. He underplayed. His Batman hangs back, he's wry, even a bit sardonic. Mostly, though, he's natural.

Plus, not for nothing? The guy had real pipes. In an episode of the animated series Justice League Unlimited, Batman is forced to sing a torch song in order to rescue Wonder Woman from the clutches of the evil witch Circe. And Conroy nailed it, while maintaining the character's abiding Batmanishness.

On the other hand, it's Conroy's Bruce Wayne that was a bit. An extended performance. He nudged his voice up a skosh, made it slightly softer. The result is the sound of privilege, of comfort, of a life of ease and unconcern.

What he was actually doing, of course, was talking like all the other privileged jerks Bruce Wayne hangs with. Basically? He was code-switching.
(Is it too much of a stretch to wonder if maybe Conroy was so good at it because he was gay, and perhaps knew a little bit more about code-switching, was more practiced at it, than other actors to play Batman? Okay, it's a stretch. But I'm just saying: It factors, maybe.)

In the years since Batman: The Animated Series ended, he never shied away from the role that would come to define him, as many other actors have done. He continued to voice the character in other shows, movies and games. He was a fixture on the Comic Con circuit, where he loved engaging with fans. He even got to play an elderly version of Bruce Wayne on the CW show Arrow.

But it wasn't his whole life. He trained at Julliard alongside Christopher Reeve, Robin Williams and Frances Conroy. He played Shakespeare, he played Broadway, he had long runs on Another World and Search for Tomorrow. He's survived by his husband, a brother, a sister.

By all accounts, Conroy was a sweet guy who relished his Batman role and his fans, which is why there's so many of us out here feeling a deep pang of loss tonight.

Kevin Conroy, Iconic Batman Voice Actor, Dies at 66

Kevin Conroy, best known for voicing Batman on Warner Bros.’ long-running TV show “Batman: The Animated Series,” has died after a short battle with cancer. He was 66.

“Batman: The Animated Series” originally aired for 85 episodes on Fox Kids from 1992-1995. Conroy’s deep, gravelly Batman voice was widely acclaimed by critics and comic book fans, with many regarding the actor as the definitive Caped Crusader. The series also featured Mark Hamill’s memorable performance as the Joker.

“Kevin was perfection,” Hamill said in a statement. “He was one of my favorite people on the planet, and I loved him like a brother. He truly cared for the people around him – his decency shone through everything he did. Every time I saw him or spoke with him, my spirits were elevated.”

Conroy was so beloved for his Batman voice role that he continued with the character in various other DC projects, including the “Batman: Arkham” and “Injustice” video games franchises. He also appeared in various DC Universe Animated Original Movies, including “Batman: Gotham Knight” (2008), “Superman/Batman: Public Enemies” (2009), “Justice League: Doom” (2012), “Batman: The Killing Joke” (2016) and “Justice League vs. the Fatal Five” (2019), among other films. The 2019 “Justice League” animated film is Conroy’s last credited feature as Batman, and his most recent video game credit as Batman is Warner Bros.’ “MultiVersus” from earlier this year.

“He’s such an iconic character,” Conroy told DC in a 2014 interview. “He’s such a part of the American cultural landscape. It’s an amazing thing to be a part of and to have contributed to.”

In the live-action space, Conroy made his feature film acting debut in 1992 romance drama “Chain of Desire,” written and directed by Temístocles López. He also starred in a recurring role on the NBC soap opera “Another World” and appeared in episodes of classic series such as “Dallas,” “Murphy Brown,” and “Cheers.”

Conroy’s voice acting was not limited to Batman. He also lendt his talents to franchises such as “Scooby-Doo” (he had a voice role on the 2019 series “Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?”) and “Masters of the Universe.” In the latter franchise, he appeared on episodes of Netflix’s “Masters of the Universe: Revelation” (playing Mer-Man in 2021) and “He-Man and the Masters of the Universe” (playing Hordak earlier this year).

“Warner Bros. Animation is saddened by the loss of our dear friend Kevin Conroy,” WB Animation said in a statement. “His iconic performance of Batman will forever stand among the greatest portrayals of the Dark Knight in any medium. We send our warmest thoughts to his loved ones and join fans around the world in honoring his legacy.”

Conroy most recently wrote “Finding Batman,” which was showcased as part of DC Pride 2022 earlier this year. Conroy was openly gay, making him the only openly gay actor to portray Batman. “Finding Batman” recounted the actor’s experience playing the Caped Crusader while also coming to terms with his own sexuality.

Conroy was born in Nov. 1955 in Westbury, N.Y., and studied acting under John Houseman at The Julliard School alongside the likes of Christopher Reeve, Frances Conroy and Robin Williams. He is survived by his husband Vaughn C. Williams, sister Trisha Conroy and brother Tom Conroy.

See more tributes to Conroy below.

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