r/CaughtMyEye • u/Sensitive_Ad_1752 • 3d ago

When Kevin Conroy auditioned to voice Batman he knew very little about the character. So he used his experience as a closeted gay man to master Batmans double life.

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210 Upvotes

79% Upvoted

88 comments sorted by

18

u/BogDelly 2d ago

The "best" Batman debate will rage on beyond us all... But he was my Batman. He was Mark Hamill's Batman. He was my favorite. The Animated Series and the Arkham games bookend my childhood fairly well. Rest in peace, Dark Knight.

8

u/ProbablyImStonedNow 2d ago

I'll never forgive CW for wasting his first and only live action Batman so badly.

2

u/BogDelly 2d ago

True, I'm just glad he got the opportunity before he passed. They might have fumbled the ball, but it was a pleasure to see the screen grabs at least.

2

u/Huckleberry_Sin 2d ago

Greatest Batman ever honestly. To anyone who lived through the 90s and onwards he was what Batman was supposed to sound like for entire generations.

2

u/Sudden_Quality_9001 1d ago

He was the best actor to portray Batman.

1

u/hamfist_ofthenorth 2d ago

What did George Cluny and Val Kilmer do to deserve this

No I'm kidding of course. Kevin Conroy is also my batman.

13

u/Own-Quote-1708 2d ago

Bruce Wayne = Straight-Acting

Batman = Gay

6

u/Puzzleheaded-Milk927 2d ago

There is no heterosexual explanation for Batman

1

u/The-Spirit-of-76 2d ago

Oh yeah, then why does Aunt Harriett exist. Checkmate. /S

2

u/Elete23 2d ago

Except it's really the opposite. Listen to how he voices Bruce vs Batman

2

u/NerdyNinjutsu 20h ago

Batty man

6

u/theweekendwolf 2d ago

You probably made a lot of bigoted people mad

1

u/ArachnidNo2269 2d ago

Why would anyone care if the cartoon voice of Batman loved sucking cock, it's like his personal business man

2

u/theweekendwolf 2d ago

Why would they indeed

1

u/IllPomegranate1924 2d ago

Because his life as a gay man informed his performance. You can't have one without the other.

-3

u/ArachnidNo2269 2d ago

I hate to be that guy and I no doubt think it helped in the role but it wasn't "necessary" another guy would have done just fine im sure

6

u/IllPomegranate1924 2d ago

We're talking about Kevin's performance, to which his experience as a gay man was necessary. You even said it helped the role.

Other straight actors have voiced Batman well. I'm not sure what your point is.

1

u/vivid-stain 2d ago

Perhaps it's not necessary, but it still added a layer of emotional depth to the character of Bruce Wayne and Batman in Kevin's performances. He was a closeted gay man at a time where it still wasn't widely accepted yet, so he could relate to the feeling of living a double life and the toll it can take on you. Batman can definitely relate to that too.

3

u/EdgyPun34257 2d ago

I have a question

What the fuck does that mean?

5

u/XenomorpWorldWide 2d ago

Kevin introduced using two distinct voices for Batman’s double life. We are used to that now, but the animated series was the first to ever do that, and it really personified the double life aspect of Bruce and Batman. The show strongly depicts two distinct personalities that hadn’t been depicted so prominently before. The animated series did a lot for setting the standard for how we view Batman. The Dark Knight films would adapt the use of two voices. The animated Spider-Man and X-men series around the time were also very important for how we view those characters.

1

u/EdgyPun34257 2d ago edited 2d ago

I appreciate that you actually answered the question, instead of just restating his words in a different order , and I assume, snorting smugly like several others

0

u/noun_verbed 2d ago

You have a man who lives two lives, one of which he keeps secret out of fear. Fear for his own safety, for that of his loved ones, but also out of shame. He feels he can never be his true self in the open

A closeted gay man can understand this dynamic pretty deeply

What is it you're having trouble understanding?

2

u/D3wdr0p 1d ago

Dude, they already agreed, what are you doing?

0

u/noun_verbed 1d ago

Damn, I thought I was replying to a different comment of theirs, my bad

2

u/DarthRedit 1d ago

lRelating to something because of a small similarity does not translate to equal experience that lets you “master” another.

That’s like saying you know what it’s like to be a Formula 1 mechanic because you know how to change a tire 😂

“Hey guys! I know how to floss… I can totally master impersonating a dentist now. “

Sticking feathers up your butt doesn’t make you a chicken.

So stop with the bs about how being a closet gay guy equates to knowing how to play a vigilante that beats criminals at night because these two things share a small similarity in regards to keeping a secret.

0

u/noun_verbed 1d ago

If you read the post again, you'll notice that it refers to Batman's 'double life', not beating up criminals

I honestly think your response speaks for itself. Not really sure there's any point arguing with somebody so set against thinking

1

u/DarthRedit 1d ago edited 1d ago

Um, Bruce Wayne’s double life is Batman…a vigilante that beats up criminals.

If you want to agree that the similarities end at “relating” to keeping a secret, sure 👍🏽. Which is not enough to “master” being Batman.

This guy thinks he knows what it’s like to be a Spanish Matador because he rode a mechanical bull once 😂 .

Look, I’m not going to continue to repeat myself because reading comprehension is not your strong suit, kid.

Maybe you should really stop talking, you’re embarrassing yourself.

Geez, must be nice being this ignorant and confidently incorrect lol.

Wait! I got a better one. That’s like saying Illegal immigrats know everything they need to be Superman because they’re both undocumented. 🙊

1

u/noun_verbed 1d ago

You chat a lot about reading comprehension for somebody who doesn't really understand semantics, themes or subtext

I'd encourage you to read up on queer readings of things like The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. You're being very dismissive of one of the most basic elements of the queer experience as expressed through fiction, and unfortunately it's making you look quite foolish

Conroy used his painful experience of living a double life to inform the pain in his performance. It's honestly quite head-scratching that you don't understand that, and yet are so full of pomposity about your ignorance

'Kid'

1

u/Ok-Stop-7922 8h ago

Are you slow?

6

u/Old_Big9561 2d ago

It means that Conroy took experience from how he tried to hide from ppl that he's gay, and applied it to how Bruce Wayne wanted to hide from ppl that he's Batman

1

u/MinaWearsGold 2d ago

I didn’t know this! What an amazing way to be able to share a part of his life with the world.

1

u/EdgyPun34257 2d ago

Yes, I read that he said that

But what does that mean in his performance?

2

u/Nolascana 2d ago

Basically, code switching.

His public persona vs private life n all that.

1

u/EdgyPun34257 2d ago

Yes, that's what he said.

But what does it actually mean for his performance?

3

u/homietron500 2d ago

Because of code-switching Kevin Conroy probably spoke differently in private vs in public and it impacted his performance by being the first voice actor for Batman to have two distinct voices for both Bruce and Batman

2

u/Stakataka805 2d ago

Like talking to a brick wall

1

u/Complex-Salt-8190 1d ago

Conroy had two "personalities" that he swapped in and out of for safety, his true self, and a "mask" he would don (metaphorically) so he doesn't get hate crimed

1

u/RaijuThunder 7h ago

Everyone does that though, maybe not to the extent he did but everyone switches who they are around different people.

0

u/Dremora-Stuff99 2d ago

You're dense huh

0

u/Stepjam 2d ago

A lot of acting is finding ways to connect your real life experiences to your character in some way. They don't have to be 1 for 1 connections, as long as they are emotionally similar for you, that's often enough.

0

u/Chemical-Fix1656 2d ago

Deep voice like Batman when not acting gay is this guys point I believe something like that

-1

u/Wonderful_Rule_2515 2d ago

And actors job is to connect with their role so they can provide authentic performances that are true to the feelings of the character

1

u/ilostmypaperplate 2d ago

omg who did this?

Gaaaaay Batman

dies...

1

u/timelessalice 2d ago

Not just being a gay man either, a gay man during the AIDS crisis watching his community dwindling as people got sick and died

1

u/TheRealcebuckets 6h ago

In Hollywood who still (in 2026) doesn’t see openly gay actors as being marketable for action stars.

I will hold on that this is why Pedro Pascal and Richard Madden still haven’t come out of the closet.

1

u/josch247 2d ago

He had to master a double life to voice batman hahaha okay

1

u/Main_Carry_8580 2d ago

I had no idea he was gay

1

u/D3wdr0p 1d ago

He spent a good portion of his career keeping it a close secret. I suppose he never entirely lost the habit.

1

u/ComeOnUpToTheHaus 2d ago

Many great performers wore the cowl. Kevin Conroy was the goat. He is the voice I hear when I think of Batman.

1

u/Icy_Weiner_1999 2d ago

Way to out him jeez

1

u/TheIncandescentAbyss 1d ago

Blah blah blah everything everywhere was gay, and being heterosexual is myth 😒

1

u/Fish_Spin_2 1d ago

But he was though? This is true.

1

u/NO0BSTALKER 1d ago

This seems like a nonsense statement.

1

u/Sensitive_Ad_1752 1d ago

Read his comic “finding Batman” where he explicitly explains that he didn’t know much about Batman and related to the character through his experience hiding his gay identity.

0

u/NO0BSTALKER 1d ago

Relating makes sense. Using his experience as a closeted gay man to master Batman’s double life does not

2

u/LoveTriscuit 1d ago

Interesting, so you’re saying you’re a closeted gay man? That’s the only way you can say that with confidence.

1

u/DarthRedit 1d ago

lol wtf

0

u/NO0BSTALKER 1d ago

Tell me what “mastering Batman’s double life”even means

1

u/LoveTriscuit 1d ago

You seriously can’t figure out that a gay man hiding his real identity and living an outward facing lie could use that experience to portray Batman, whose real mask is Bruce Wayne?

Are you 6?

1

u/NO0BSTALKER 1d ago

No beyond it being relatable iv no idea how that helps you voice the character. The statement seems nice but I don’t get the relation.

1

u/LoveTriscuit 1d ago

And so I ask again, are you a closeted gay man who can speak to his experience?

1

u/CommissionBetter2579 7h ago

Seems like you are.

0

u/LoveTriscuit 7h ago

Gay as an insult, how childish.

I’m sorry you’re so insecure, insignificant, and unloved that you think that’s funny or insulting. You’ve brought nothing to this argument, which is the same as saying you brought yourself.

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0

u/DarthRedit 1d ago

I think you’re the one that can’t figure out the concept here.

Relating to something because of a small similarity does not translate to equal experience that lets you “master” another.

That’s like saying you know what it’s like to be a Formula 1 mechanic because you know how to change a tire 😂

“Hey guys! I know how to floss… I can totally master impersonating a dentist now. “

Sticking feathers up your butt doesn’t make you a chicken.

So stop with the bs about how being a closet gay guy equates to knowing how to play a vigilante that beats criminals at night because these two things share a small similarity in regards to keeping a secret.

2

u/LoveTriscuit 1d ago

lol fucking hell dude.

Of course being gay doesn’t help him play the vigilante. Being closeted helps him play a man with a secret.

What a joke, haha.

1

u/D3wdr0p 1d ago

It's entirely true, and there was a very moving documentary about it.

1

u/DarthRedit 1d ago

It totally is a nonsense statement lol

Like come on… he is voicing a guy that dresses like a bat and beats criminals up under an alter identity. Being a closet gay guy does not translate to this, especially voice acting.

1

u/Iongjohn 1d ago

he was gay, Kevin Conroy?

1

u/SoupBeast 2d ago

My favorite superhero of all time was perfectly voiced by a gay man. I'll hear his voice for as long as I read the comics

That means so much to me as a gay man myself, when I would watch BTAS as a kid and before I even knew who I was. Along with Mark as the Joker, always a huge ally to the gay community. I'm so lucky to have had these icons in my lifetime

1

u/greatalgorithm 2d ago

lol what?

7

u/Sensitive_Ad_1752 2d ago

read the comic 'finding batman' that Kevin wrote about this, it's really good

-1

u/Nimrod_Butts 2d ago

Dang I just thought he read stuff off paper

3

u/IllPomegranate1924 2d ago

You would think that if you don't know anything about voice acting.

1

u/Complex-Salt-8190 1d ago

If that's all he did it'd be flat an an tonal , acting takes actual effort ya know