Comic Book spotlight: Damian Wayne should be Robin in the film universe

When Warner Bros. and DC are ready to bring Robin back to the big screen, Damian Wayne should be the one at Batman’s side.

Counting the Adam West movies, there have been eight live-action Batman movies. Then we have Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League where Ben Affleck was the Dark Knight. But in all of those projects, we’ve only seen two Robins, and Dick Grayson was the young hero in both cases. Burt Ward (Batman 1966) set the standard for that time. He was the Boy Wonder we knew from the comics. Chris O’Donnell (Batman Forever and Batman and Robin) was, to put it nicely, a different kind of Robin. It’s been a while since we’ve had Robin in a movie, and it’s time we see him again. However, this time, we should move away from Dick Grayson and give Damian Wayne a shot.

Damian Wayne is the son of Bruce Wayne and Talia al Ghul. He was raised by Talia and his grandfather, Ra’s, for years. When Damian started to live with Bruce, there was an adjustment period for both of them. Damian had to get used to living by Bruce and Batman’s rules. This meant no killing and sometimes not being able to leave whenever he wanted. For Bruce, he had to learn not to be so distant. He had to be more of a father than he was to any of his wards. Both of them still struggle with their issues, but it’s clear they love each other, despite not knowing each other for a chunk of their lives.

Dick Grayson is the most popular sidekick of all time. It doesn’t matter the genre. But after seeing him as Robin for so many years, a new change of pace would be a good idea. Damian is a perfect choice. He’s completely different from the Robin we know. He’s pompous, brash, and self-entitled. Whenever Damian goes “-TT-,” readers probably roll their eyes.

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Nonetheless, when you’re the son of Batman and raised by one of the best fighters in the world, it makes sense. Being Batman’s sidekick was a new experience. When he became Robin, he was ahead of the originals when they were his age. To Damian, this must-have seemed like a step-down. We’ve seen that he’s grown substantially over the years.

Batman and Damian having to deal with their issues — all while trying to save Gotham — would be perfect for a movie. It creates drama that doesn’t revolve around Batman’s self-loathing. Dick Grayson disagreed with Batman on a lot of things, but not like this. Bruce and Dick had the same goals and solutions to problems. Damian wants a more aggressive and sometimes permanent answer to a problem. Watching the two of them grow would be a new direction for Batman movies. Bruce learns how to be a father and a better hero, while Damian learns to not be a narcissistic jerk. Character development from a character that’s not Bruce Wayne is something we haven’t seen in Batman movies.

Damian Wayne hasn’t been around a long time, but he’s already made an impact on comic books. The animated, direct-to-video DC Universe Original Movies have started using Damian as Robin instead of Dick Grayson or Tim Drake. This means DC Comics sees the potential in him, as well. He’s a more complex character than all of his predecessors. Like Spider-Man and Superman, we know Dick Grayson’s origin story. We don’t need him to be the first Robin in a new franchise. We can go right to Damian. Hopefully, it won’t be long until we see him alongside his father in a movie.

What do you think? Is Damian Wayne be the way to go for Robin? Let us know in the comments below.