Summary
- DC Comics is releasing a 4K edition of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm to celebrate its 30th anniversary, which includes a tribute documentary titled Kevin Conroy: I Am the Knight.
- Kevin Conroy, known for voicing Batman in animated formats, made a live-action appearance as an alternate version of Bruce Wayne in Crisis on Infinite Earths.
- Mark Hamill, who voices The Joker, announced that he may retire from the role now that Kevin Conroy, his long-time co-star as Batman, has passed away.
Last year, fans of Batman and DC Comics were shocked when it was confirmed that the legendary actor Kevin Conroy passed away after lending his voice for the Caped Crusader for decades. Now, with the upcoming 4K release of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, the company teases a very special tribute to one of the biggest names behind the character.
Conroy started acting in 1978, but it was in 1992 when he first lent his voice to The Dark Knight in the iconic Batman: The Animated Series. In 1993, Mask of the Phantasm came out, set in the same universe as the show. The story centers on a dangerous villain, who starts killing the gangsters from Gotham City. While investigating the case, Batman is mistaken by the criminal, complicating everything.
Now that the movie is celebrating its 30th Anniversary, DC is releasing a 4K edition of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, which will include a tribute documentary titled Kevin Conroy: I Am the Knight. Anticipating the release on September 13, the company has shared a clip from the documentary that features Conroy reflecting on the Bruce Wayne/Batman duality:
“From the beginning, I thought that Batman is the real character and Bruce Wayne was the disguise. That’s the way I’ve played this. Bruce Wayne is the alter-ego, that’s the face he puts on for the world. Batman is who he is in his heart.”
One of Kevin Conroy’s Last Appearance as Batman Was Epic
Although he was famous for playing Batman in animated format, showing his skills only by his voice, Conroy got the chance to play the character in live-action format in one of his last projects. The actor was one of the many guest-stars in the Arrowverse adaptation of Crisis on Infinite Earths. Conroy appeared on Crisis on Infinite Earths: Part Two, playing an alternate version of Bruce Wayne from Earth-99.
For many fans, Conroy was one of the best actors to ever portrayed the Caped Crusader, so seeing him playing a live-action version of the character in the most ambitious crossover from The CW’s franchise was an unforgettable and epic moment.
Conroy started voicing Batman right when Mark Hamill started lending his voice to The Joker, with the two of them working side by side in several projects from the world of The Dark Knight. So, the news of Conroy’s passing was a major shock for Hamill. In fact, in an interview with Empire Magazine, the star from Star Wars revealed he would probably be retiring from playing The Joker now that his friend and long-time co-star won’t be voicing Batman:
“They would call and say, ‘They want you to do the Joker,’ and my only question was, ‘Is Kevin Batman?’ If they said yes, I would say, ‘I’m in.’ We were like partners. We were like Laurel and Hardy. Without Kevin there, there doesn’t seem to be a Batman for me.”