All 31 animated Batman movies ranked from worst to best

3. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

With Batman: The Animated Series tearing up the small screen, Warner Bros. decided to give the Dark Knight his own big-screen adventure in Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. The result was nothing short of excellence.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest animated movies ever made, it introduces audiences to a new villain with ties to Batman’s past. Known as the Phantasm, the ghoulish figure begins killing off retired mobsters in an act of revenge before eventually coming for The Joker. Naturally, the Caped Crusader intervenes, but what he doesn’t expect is for the case to get so personal.

Mask of the Phantasm is a haunting tale that sheds a lot of light on how the DCAU’s Batman came to be, showing us the beginnings that the animated series did not. It also features a gripping mystery at its heart, and a thrilling original villain that is just one of the many beautiful creations the DCAU gifted us with. Moreover, it might just be the finest work that Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill have ever delivered, because their performances as Batman and The Joker are nothing short of captivating.

You might be shocked that this one doesn’t rank even higher. That’s how flawless Batman: Mask of the Phantasm and its reputation is. And honestly, it deserves every bit of the love that it gets.