10 Mind-Blowing Facts You Didn't Know About The DC Animated Universe

Although he's seen by many (with good reason) as the finest on-screen Batman as well as the glue that binds together the entire DCAU, being the only actor to appear in every one of the animated universe's series and movies, back in the early nineties Kevin Conroy had neither voice acting experience nor much interest in Batman and so was not the obvious choice for the new series's lead.

Predominantly a stage and soap actor, Conroy saw voice acting as mainly a way to supplement his income in between theatre jobs and Batman was his first ever audition for an animated series (the producers were only aware of him at all because voice director Andrea Romano's roommate, a casting director, recommended him).

His only frame of reference for Batman, meanwhile, was the camp, comedic Adam West series, leaving Timm having to explain the darker-edged take on the character that the show was seeking in terms of theatrical characters with whom Conroy was familiar, such as Hamlet.

Even so, on reading the script that he was sent, Conroy was convinced that shady cop Harvey Bullock was the more interesting role than the title character. He even begged producers to let him audition for Commissioner Gordon instead before they talked him into the idea that being the lead might give him more to play with.

And we can be thankful that they did, because, without the strength of Conroy's performance in the central role, Batman: The Animated Series may never have spawned a whole interconnected shared universe.