Batman 1989 Changed Superhero Movies And You Barely Noticed

In the 30 years since it hit theaters, virtually every superhero movie has been influenced by what was first accomplished in Batman '89. Its impact has been so massive that in a world where it set the standards, you might not have even noticed how much of an effect it had.

For those of you who don't remember what it was like back in the days leading up to June 23, 1989, it cannot be stressed enough that Batman was everywhere that summer. Even in a year crowded with massively successful franchise movies like Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade Ghostbusters II, Back to the Future II and the beginning of the "Disney Renaissance" with The Little Mermaid, the Dark Knight was pop culture's most inescapable character.

Of course, movie marketing had existed for as long as movies had, but the Batman marketing was on a whole different level. There were countless tie-ins, from toys to breakfast cereals to a concept album by Prince, all of which arrived with some of the strongest branding ever.

Rather than putting the spotlight on director Tim Burton, stars Michael Keaton and Jack Nicholson, or even the character of Batman himself, the marketing was overwhelmingly focused on the iconic image of Batman's emblem. It started with the first poster, which was just the emblem and a release date, and continued across countless t-shirts, hats, action figures, and pretty much everything else in the meantime. Even the opening sequence of the movie itself was just an extreme close-up of that logo underneath the credits. By reducing the entire idea of Batman down to that symbol, using the branding that had already been refined over the past 50 years of comics and pop culture, Warner Bros. seared that image into moviegoers' minds and sold an estimated $500 million in merchandise alone. Adjusting for inflation, that's over $1 billion today, all before we even get to the box office take for the movie itself. Keep watching the video to see how Batman 1989 changed superhero movies and you barely noticed!

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Massive marketing | 0:15
Those wonderful toys | 0:55
Some kind of body armor | 1:53
Get a load of this | 3:28
Dance with the devil | 4:35
Body count | 6:03
A whole new Gotham | 7:07
The '40s revival | 8:27
The wrong lessons | 9:49