Remember, Sandy Collora’s BATMAN: DEAD END Did Batman Right First

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I’ve already gone on record saying that Ben Affleck’s version of Batman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is my favorite version so far. I loved the darkness and intensity of the character, and I also loved that classic look of the Dark Knight being brought to life on the big screen. But that’s not the first time we’ve seen this version of Batman in a film.

In 2003, Sandy Collora shook the geek world when he unveiled his badass short film Batman: Dead End, and there are a lot of similarities between that version of Batman (played by Clark Bartram) and Affleck’s version of the character. The costume in Batman v Superman has more detail to it, but the concept of it and how the character was portrayed is exactly the same as what Collora and his team created all those years ago.

Other than the different actors playing Batman, Zack Snyder obviously had a lot more money to bring the Dark Knight to life the way he did. But Collora did it first, and I can’t help but think that Snyder had to have been inspired by the way Collora brought Batman to life when trying to develop his own version of the character.

I’ve been a fan of Bartram’s Batman since I first saw him play the Dark Knight in the fan film, and ever since then I’ve been waiting to see that vision of the hero come to life on the big screen. Well, I finally got it, and that’s one of the main reasons why I loved how Batman was portrayed in Batman v Superman.

Batman: Dead End has been out of the limelight for a long time, so I just wanted to remind everyone that this hardcore dark version of Batman already existed before Snyder came around. Snyder just had the opportunity to put him in a feature film. 

Of course, I understand that there were several other influences involved with Collora’s vision of the hero, but he was the first one to bring this badass Batman to life in a live-action project. After rewatching Batman: Dead End, there are still some aspects of that version that I like better. 

If you need a reminder the awesomeness of Batman: Dead End, check it out below!

R.I.P Andrew Koenig Batman: Dead End is a fan film made by Sandy Collora that premiered July 19, 2003 at the San Diego Comic Con, and on the internet shortly thereafter. The film was made for a reported $30,000.Collora filmed a similar project, 2004's World's Finest, with much of the same cast and crew.