Sure Kevin Conroy has solidified himself as the quintessential voice of Batman for most fans, but let’s not forget the countless other people who have provided their unique vocals for the Dark Knight not only in America but around the world. The DC FanDome “I’m Batman: The Voices Behind the Cowl” panel took the time to highlight the various international Batman voice performers.
The voice of LEGO Batman himself Will Arnett kicked things off introducing the panel.
Some actors like Jerome Löwenberg (the German voice of Batman) and Samay Raj Thakkar (the Indian voice of Batman) have been voice acting since they were young and encouraged to pursue that particular field. Others like Ettore Zuim (a Brazilian dub actor) originally intended to pursue work in the theater but wound up in voice dubbing.
The various international actors echoed the similar sentiment of the difficulty of creating a natural rhythm for the dub while simultaneously being true the character. As Sergio Gutiérrez Coto elaborated, the variety of genres for Batman as a character allows for much flexibility for a performer.
The longevity and iconic status of Batman is a testament to the universal appeal of the character, echoed by the panel. Many of the actors in fact were childhood fans of the character whether it was from the film, shows, comics, etc..
After dubbing the Hindi language for Batman Begins, Thakkar said he got a touch of fame with playing such an iconic superhero.
Interestingly, one actor found it more difficult to dub the Bruce Wayne voice than the Batman voice. The majority of the actors agreed that Batman was the “real” voice and Bruce Wayne was the facade.
The actors who dubbed Christian Bale‘s voice in Christopher Nolan‘s Batman trilogy certainly had their work cut for them. It’s safe to assume most people are familiar with Bale’s gravelly know what I’m talking about.
Claudio Serrano found that the physical difference with Ben Affleck’s Batman, specifically his large size, led his performance to transmitting a different kind of energy.
I’ve heard that video game voice recordings are extremely grueling, so it’s not surprising that French Batman voice Adrien Antoine felt the same way with dubbing voices for video game projects. Video game recordings entail very long days alone in a booth. Löwenberg likewise felt that animation lacked certain nuances compared to live-action Batman projects yet found recording animation projects more fun since it allows him to go the extreme.
Italian actor Claudio Santamaria considered dubbing LEGO Batman one of the funniest experiences of his career and never had so much fun in his life. The dub actors felt that it harkened back to the classic Adam West series and agreed that Arnett gave a hilarious performance. Compared to the typical Batman fare, LEGO Batman proved to be liberating for the actors.
Indian actor Damandeep Singh commended Warner Bros. for putting him and his fellow international voices of Batman into the limelight.
Be sure to check out the rest of The Beat‘s DC FanDome coverage.
