Batman: All 5 Dick Grayson actors ranked from worst to best

3. Chris O'Donnell

Appeared in: Batman Forever, Batman and Robin

Chris O'Donnell was the first actor tasked with giving Robin a more modern interpretation and when he first appeared in 1995's Batman Forever, he did just that. This wasn't a catchphrase-spouting sidekick with very little nuance; he was a grief-stricken young man lashing out at the world because Two-Face had killed his parents in front of him.

O'Donnell did very well with the material. He oozed charisma which instantly made him charming, but he could also play arrogant really well, which made audiences conflicted when he clashed with Bruce. It was a believable portrayal of a lost and slightly wayward young man in the '90s and an underrated adaptation of the Dick Grayson character. We got to know who Dick was before he put on the mask, and that made him a much more interesting Robin.

In spite of O'Donnell's best efforts to pick up that performance in 1997's Batman and Robin, the movie's script completely let him down. It attempted to adapt Dick's desire to go solo and be his own hero, but it only ended up in making him come off as arrogant and misguided. That was the least of the movie's problems, but it was an arc that did a disservice to O'Donnell's performance.

This was the most well-rounded version of Dick Grayson we had seen at the time and not enough people are having that conversation. Could it have been better in Batman and Robin? Absolutely, but that was no fault of Chris O'Donnell's, who did a great job in the role - especially in Batman Forever.