The Big Picture
- OnStar's Batman ads featured a forgotten live-action Batman, played by actor Bruce Thomas, to showcase the capabilities of General Motors' guiding system.
- Thomas' portrayal blended elements from Michael Keaton and Val Kilmer's performances, making the Dark Knight his own with a cool, collected, and competent demeanor.
- The OnStar Batman ads drew inspiration from Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher's Batman films, involving crew members and even bringing back Michael Gough as Alfred and the iconic Batmobile.
There are a vast number of live-action Batmen out there. From feature films to television, the Dark Knight is a popular and consistent brand. Just this year, more than one live-action version of the Caped Crusader has existed at the same time, as both Ben Affleck's and Michael Keaton's incarnations appear in 2023's The Flash, and a sequel to The Batman (which starred Robert Patterson in the titular role) is currently in the works. And that's not even counting the upcoming live-action reboot under the supervision of James Gunn and Peter Safran. But there is one live-action Batman that has been largely forgotten by audiences and fans alike, one who briefly appeared on television in 2000.
After 1997's Batman & Robin, the future of Hollywood's live-action Batman was uncertain. Another sequel was unlikely, and after Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, and George Clooney had all donned the cape and cowl over the span of a decade, it was a wonder who might be brave enough to put on the (nippled) bat-suit next time around. Years before Christopher Nolan teamed up with Christian Bale to save the Dark Knight, another brave soul stepped into the Batmobile and answered the call. That's right, promoting the OnStar guiding system was a new incarnation of the Caped Crusader, who made his mark on the legacy of Batman, even if he's since been forgotten.
Bruce Thomas' OnStar Batman Performance Mixes Michael Keaton & Val Kilmer
Played by actor Bruce Thomas — who is maybe best known for his role as Stephen Trager on ABC Family's Kyle XY — OnStar's version of Batman appeared in six different advertisement shorts, each meant to showcase the different features of General Motors' onboard guiding system. As Batman travels around in the Batmobile, "keeping his eyes on the road," he calls his OnStar agents for help as he battles some of his fiercest enemies across Gotham City. There's no denying the somewhat campy nature of some of these ads (though still a vast improvement from Joel Schumacher's films), but the fact that we got another live-action Batman after the release of Batman & Robin is something of a small television miracle.
Thomas' Batman is a strange blend of Michael Keaton and Val Kilmer's performances. His dark and sober nature lends well to the Caped Crusader, though he can occasionally be lighthearted with a joke. But despite the clear influences, Thomas makes the Dark Knight his own. Adding sly smiles and excellent motor skills to his utility belt, the OnStar Batman is cool, collected, and extremely competent. His voice perfectly captures the vigilante's cadence, and he holds himself with pride, the same way Keaton's Batman would. His role as a spokesperson aside, Thomas is able to fully transform himself into the Dark Knight Detective. In many ways, it's a shame we didn't get more of the actor as Batman going forward, especially in a non-advertisement capacity. Seriously, Bruce Thomas could've played an excellent TV Batman. Maybe one day Warner Bros. will recognize the talent on their hands.
Ironically, Thomas' time in the Batman universe continued beyond his brief tenure as the Dark Knight. Over the years, he lent his vocal talents to various Justice League animated films and played supervillain Dr. Anatol Mykros in an episode of Beware the Batman. In 2014, he voiced Commissioner Jim Gordon in the animated film Son of Batman, a role he'd reprise for two other animated features, Batman: Bad Blood and Batman: Hush. This makes Thomas one of only two actors to play both Batman and Jim Gordon, the other being Ben McKenzie, who played Jim Gordon on the television series Gotham and voiced Batman in the 2011 animated feature Batman: Year One.
Though many erroneously claimed that Thomas reprised his live-action Batman role for the pilot episode of The WB's short-lived Birds of Prey, Thomas revealed to The BatPodcast in 2014 that this wasn't true. Not wanting to take credit for work he didn't do, Thomas exclaimed that he'd be happy to return as Batman one day, even if just in an animated capacity. Here's hoping!
Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher Helped Shape the Public Perception of Batman
There's no denying the powerful influence the Batman anthology films had on OnStar's Bat-themed advertisements. For many, the live-action films of the '90s were many's main, if not only, window into the Batman universe. Sure, Batman: The Animated Series was out there, but there weren't multiple iterations of the character the same way there are now. In a multiverse-less age, it was much harder to have multiple Batmen running around at once. Directors Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher, for better or worse, shaped the way the general public viewed Batman, and that lent well to OnStar's vision for the Dark Knight.
Naturally, OnStar leaned into the Warner Bros. films for guidance rather than the original DC Comics. According to Thomas in The BatPodcast episode, OnStar hired many of the crew members from the original Batman films to work on the advertisements, hoping to recapture the same magic. Danny Elfman's iconic score even returns in all its glory. Additionally, Michael Gough, who had played Alfred Pennyworth in all four Batman features from 1989 to 1997, returned to reprise his role one final time in the "Batcave" ad (also known as "Batman & Alfred"). As one of the more consistent characters in the Burton-Schumacher chronology (and certainly a fan favorite), his familiar face smooths the transition from Clooney's Batman to Bruce Thomas'.
Likewise, Michael Keaton's iconic Batmobile from Burton's Batman and Batman Returns makes a comeback in all six of these ads as Batman resurrects his classic car for some high-speed action. To this day, there isn't a more recognizable Batmobile out there, which ultimately worked in OnStar's favor. Of course, Alfred and the Batmobile aren't the only consistencies between the films and OnStar's Gotham City. In "Riddle Me This," the Riddler (played by Brian Stepanek) grabs Batman's attention by using skywriting in the same vein as Schumacher's Batman Forever. In fact, the writing looks exactly like what appears in the 1995 film.
Similarly, in "Minor Setbacks," Batman uses the OnStar service to remotely open the Batmobile's door. On his way down from the skyscraper above, he glides to the ground in a shot that looks eerily similar to something from the Schumacher productions. And this isn't to mention Batman's love interest Vicki Vale (Brooke Burns), who was made popular by Burton's first Batman feature. While being pursued by the Penguin (played by an unknown actor), Batman is forced to call her, explaining that he'll be a bit late for dinner. No wonder she never reappeared after the first movie...
OnStar's Partnered With DC Comics for Cross-Promotion
What was impressive about OnStar's Batman series of shorts is that they didn't just extend to television commercials. Running from 2000 until the beginning of 2002, OnStar's Batman campaign was a multimedia one in nature. Yes, there were movie-quality live-action shorts that aired regularly on television, but that wasn't all. Radio and print ads also highlighted Batman's use of the OnStar system, which juxtaposed well with what appeared on TV. But that wasn't all. OnStar's partnership with DC Comics opened the doors for entirely new forms of advertisements.
In addition to these ads, DC Comics released two special comic books featuring their version of Batman. While they weren't very long (or terribly impressive as far as Batman comics are concerned), they helped secure the OnStar Batman's small part in the legacy of the Dark Knight. In the first edition, Batman faces off against the Riddler, tying into the advertisement featuring their battle, while he battles Mr. Freeze in the second (and no, his appearance is not based on the Arnold Schwarzenegger version).
DC Comics even went above and beyond, producing a series of animated, interactive web comics for OnStar's website, which featured Catwoman and Two-Face alongside some of Batman's previously mentioned foes. For these animated webisodes, Bruce Thomas reprised his role as Batman opposite Curtis Armstrong's Joker, who previously appeared in the live-action "Joker Face" ad. As these timeless foes bicker and battle, we can't help but wish there were more fights between Thomas and Armstrong. Maybe one day these two will return to the microphone to voice these characters once more. If Adam West and company could do it, there's no reason these guys can't.
There's no denying that General Motors fought hard to make their Batman universe as well-rounded as possible, addressing every media outlet they could to make sure everyone knew that Batman himself used the OnStar system. Along with all the exciting ads (printed or otherwise), the campaign added an additional sweepstakes that allowed the winner to "walk on set" as an extra in whatever next Batman movie Warner Bros. produced. Since no sequel to Batman & Robin was eminent, the Batman movie in question ultimately became Christopher Nolan's Batman Begins, which wouldn't premiere until three years after the campaign ended in 2002.
OnStar's "Movie Quality" Campaign Becomes Too Expensive
Ultimately, OnStar's team-up with Batman worked out for the best. According to The Auto Channel, Mike McEnaney, OnStar's Director of Sales and Marketing Services, once called the partnership between the automotive service and DC Comics "extremely successful," noting that it helped raise awareness for their brand. No wonder, as the six shorts were directed by a combination of The Fugitive director Andrew Davis and Vincent Ward, who directed the Robin Williams movie What Dreams May Come. Not only did Davis and Ward completely nail the tone of the Dark Knight, but they seamlessly blended Gotham City with General Motors' hopes and dreams to rake in more OnStar users.
Despite the immense success of the OnStar Batman ads, the company eventually dropped Batman (and in turn, Bruce Thomas) at the tail end of 2002. "It's certainly expensive to produce commercials that are essentially movie quality," said Chet Huber, then-president of OnStar. "Which is what we were all striving for when we used Batman." Huber explained that their three-year contract with AOL Time-Warner (the parent company of DC Comics at the time) was about to expire, and the Caped Crusader was to be replaced by other radio ads that better explained and emphasized the OnStar service. Batman had saved the day, but his time as OnStar's hero had passed.
Although Bruce Thomas' tenure as Batman was short-lived, his time under the cowl made a difference and proved that the Dark Knight still had live-action potential even after the train wreck that was Batman & Robin. In the hands of the right director, and with the right actor wearing the cape and cowl, Batman could still pull in an audience and inspire others. It wouldn't be long before Warner Bros. took the hint, and Christian Bale's iteration (alongside Christopher Nolan's vision) proved just that. Bale starred in a trilogy of critically acclaimed Batman pictures that are still talked about over a decade later, and while Bruce Thomas' Batman isn't to thank for that, he kept the Batmobile warm in the meantime.
