Batman: All 14 Robin actors ranked from worst to best

14. Johnny Duncan

The second ever actor to take on the role of the Boy Wonder, Johnny Duncan put on the tights and the domino mask for the second Batman serial, titled Batman & Robin, in 1949.

Like Douglas Croft who came before him, he was hampered by the dated costumes, limited production values and overall exaggerated tone of the production. However, of all the characters involved, his Robin isn’t the biggest departure from his modern day counterpart and Duncan did everything he could with the role. And if anything, we should appreciate the fact that he continued to appear at cons and promote the Robin character until his death at the age of 92 in 2016.

13. Douglas Croft

The very first time the Boy Wonder ever graced the big screen came only three years after his very first appearance in the comics. Douglas Croft became the first actor to portray him, starring in the 1943 Batman serial – which was, in fact, the first live-action Batman adaptation.

A product of its time, the serial’s production is definitely dated by today’s standards (though some would argue that it aged better than the 1949 sequel). Again, Croft’s performance as Robin is one of the few things that hasn’t aged all that much and actually manages to stand out in spite of the questionable costumes.

That could have something to do with the fact that his costume isn’t as oversized as his successor’s and the fact that the young actor himself was only 16 years old, allowing him to bring some authentic youthfulness to the role. And, in many ways, one could argue that this paved the way for Burt Ward to do the same two decades later.