How to Watch the Batman Movies in Order

The Caped Crusader is spread out across multiple streaming services

By
Nick Steinberg
Nick Steinberg
Nick Steinberg
Writer
  • Wilfrid Laurier University
Nick Steinberg has been writing about technology since 2014. His work has appeared in Goliath, Screen Rant, TechRadar, and many more publications.
lifewire's editorial guidelines
Updated on March 1, 2022

The good news is there are so many Batman movies to watch that you could stay at home for quite a long while before getting through them all. The bad news is the Batman movie franchise has also gone through many reboots, there's no consistent chronology to serve as a viewing guide. So we recommend watching them in order of release or by series. 

This article only covers Batman movies that were released theatrically. It doesn’t include direct-to-video animated releases or animated films in which he’s not the main character, such as The Lego Movie. 2016’s Batman: The Killing Joke is also not on the list since it only ran in theaters for a one-night event. 

Michael Keaton in Batman (1989)
 Warner Bros. Pictures

How to Watch the Batman Movies in Order of Release

While some Batman movies are available to stream on HBO Max, others are on separate platforms. If you don’t have an HBO Max account, you can rent most Batman movies from iTunes, Amazon, and other online movie rental services. Availability is constantly changing, so a film available on one streaming service today may be gone tomorrow.

Movie Release Date Where to Watch
Batman July 1943 DVD available to buy on Amazon
Batman and Robin (serial) May 1949 Amazon Prime
Batman: The Movie July 1966 Amazon Prime
Batman June 1989 Amazon Prime Hulu
Batman Returns June 1992 Amazon Prime Hulu
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm December 1993 Amazon Prime YouTube
Batman Forever June 1995 Amazon Prime Hulu
Batman & Robin June 1997 Amazon Prime Hulu
Batman Begins June 2005 HBO Max Netflix Amazon Prime
The Dark Knight July 2008 HBO Max Netflix Amazon Prime
The Dark Knight Rises July 2012 HBO Max AMC+ Amazon Prime
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice March 2016 HBO Max Amazon Prime Sling TV
Suicide Squad August 2016 HBO Max Amazon Prime Netflix
The Lego Batman Movie February 2017 HBO Max Amazon Prime TBS
Justice League November 2017 HBO Max Amazon Prime
Joker October 2019 Amazon Prime TNT Netflix
The Batman March 2022 Not yet released

Batman (1943) and Batman and Robin (1943) are also on YouTube in their entirety. You should be able to find them through a quick Google search.

How to Watch the Batman Movies by Series

Although there are a few outliers, we can separate the Batman movies into three main series: the Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher era, Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy, and the DC Extended Universe. Here’s the order you should follow if you watch them by franchise.

Movie Series Where to Watch
Batman Batman Serials DVD available to buy on Amazon
Batman and Robin Batman Serials Amazon Prime
Batman: The Movie Batman Television Series Amazon Prime
Batman Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher era Amazon Prime Hulu
Batman Returns Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher era Amazon Prime Hulu
Batman Forever Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher era Amazon Prime Hulu
Batman & Robin Tim Burton/Joel Schumacher era Amazon Prime Hulu
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm Batman: The Animated Series Amazon Prime YouTube
Batman Begins The Dark Knight Trilogy HBO Max Netflix Amazon Prime
The Dark Knight The Dark Knight Trilogy HBO Max Netflix Amazon Prime
The Dark Knight Rises The Dark Knight Trilogy HBO Max AMC+ Amazon Prime
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice DC Extended Universe HBO Max Amazon Prime Sling TV
Suicide Squad DC Extended Universe HBO Max Amazon Prime Netflix
Justice League DC Extended Universe HBO Max Amazon Prime
The Lego Batman Movie The Lego Movie Film Series HBO Max Amazon Prime TBS
Joker "Separate Earth" DCEU Amazon Prime TNT Netflix
The Batman "Separate Earth" DCEU Not yet released
Was this page helpful?