Every Batman Movie Villain Ever Ranked From Worst To Best

Though having a white guy play Ra's al Ghul likely wouldn't fly today, Liam Neeson's portrayal of the character was remarkable in almost all the right ways.

Starting out as Bruce's mentor under the alias Henri Ducard, he attempts to insert Bruce into the League of Shadows' ranks before their, uh, "philosophical disagreement" about killing people sends them on their separate ways.

And while the marketing played up the fact that Ken Watanabe would be playing Ra's al Ghul, he's ultimately just a decoy, with Ducard returning from the dead mid-movie and revealing himself to Bruce as the real Ra's.

Neeson's authoritative manner is perfect for the forthright, self-righteous terrorist, steadfast in his belief that decaying cities must be razed from within so they can flourish anew.

He's cunning, ambitious, and a solid physical match for Bruce despite being considerably older. His death still irks many fans, though, given how smugly Nolan tries to argue that Batman doesn't kill Ra's.

Setting up the circumstances to kill someone and then doing nothing to save them is 100% the same thing as killing them.