Damian Wayne (né al Ghul) is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Batman. He was created by Grant Morrison and Andy Kubert. Damian Wayne is the biological son of Bruce Wayne/Batman. His mother is Batman's love interest Talia, daughter of Batman's adversary Ra's al Ghul, who wants Bruce Wayne to sire his future lineage. Bruce and Talia were engaged, but she calls off their marriage once she becomes pregnant and tells Bruce she miscarried, keeping Damian's existence hidden for years. Damian was intended to serve as a host body for Ra's al Ghul, which would unify the Wayne and al Ghul factions. Damian is Bruce's youngest child and only biological one, with Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Tim Drake, and Cassandra Cain as his adopted siblings.
A prototype of the character originally appeared as an unnamed infant in the 1987 story Batman: Son of the Demon, which at the time was not considered canon. Following this, various alternate universe stories dealt with the character's life, giving him various names. In 2006, the character was reinterpreted as Damian Wayne by Grant Morrison and introduced into the main continuity in Batman #655, the first issue of the "Batman and Son" story arc after a temporal paradox to the timeline including of Batman's history following the events of Infinite Crisis. Damian Wayne is the fifth character to assume the role of Robin, Batman's vigilante partner.
Damian, as a preadolescent, was left by his mother in the care of his father, who had been unaware of his existence. He is violent, self-important, and was trained by the League of Assassins, learning to kill at a young age which troubles his relationship with his father who refuses to kill. However, the Dark Knight does care for his lost progeny. After the events of Batman R.I.P. and Batman: Battle for the Cowl, he takes the role of Robin at ten years of age, becoming the fifth person to use the Robin persona. He first works with Dick Grayson before going to work alongside his father, upon his father's return to the role of Batman.
Damian appears in the 2023 Christmas-themed animated film, Merry Little Batman, voiced by Yonas Kibreab; and returned in the TV series, Bat-Fam, with Kibreab reprising his role. He is also slated to make his live-action debut in the film The Brave and the Bold, produced by DC Studios.
Publication history The child from Son of the Demon was used as a backup character in various stories before appearing as Damian Wayne.
In the Elseworlds story, The Brotherhood of the Bat (1995), a version named Tallant Wayne appears, who crusades against his grandfather Ra's al Ghul. Brotherhood of the Bat features a future in which Ra's al Ghul discovers the Batcave following Bruce Wayne's death, and outfits the League of Assassins in variant Batman costumes based on Wayne's rejected designs. Talia and Bruce's son joins the Brotherhood in his father's costume, to destroy it from within.
In another Elseworlds story, Kingdom Come (1996) by Mark Waid and Alex Ross, which functioned as a possible future to the canon of the time, this child of Batman and Talia is named Ibn al Xu'ffasch (Arabic: ابن الخفّاش), literally "Son of the Bat", and is a member of Lex Luthor's inner circle. He works as a double agent for Batman in Luthor's organization, and thus aligned with his father instead of his maternal grandfather. In the Elliot S! Maggin novelization of Kingdom Come, al Xu'ffasch tells Bruce that his mother Talia is still alive and working as a Mother Superior in Cairo, one of Mother Teresa's successors. al Xu'ffasch reappears in Waid's 1999 sequel The Kingdom.
The Kingdom: Son of the Bat shows flashbacks that shed new insights into Ibn al Xu'ffasch's history: that he was reared by Ra's al Ghul to be the heir to his empire, that he eventually murdered his grandfather (cutting off his head to prevent yet another regeneration), and that he sought therapy from psychiatrist Dr. Gibson. He was eventually recruited by Rip Hunter to try to stop a madman named Gog from altering his history. He works with several other heroes of his generation – Kid Flash, the daughter of the Flash (Wally West); Nightstar; and Offspring, the son of Plastic Man.
In League of Batmen (2001), the sequel to Brotherhood of the Bat, Tallant leads his own team of variant Batmen to combat the plague that was al Ghul's legacy. During the battle, Tallant discovers that his grandfather is the one who murdered his father and then cloned him. Ra's even sent the clone to murder his own daughter. Because of the deaths of his parents at Ra's's hands, Tallant has completed following his father's tragic path as Batman. The new Dark Knight desires justice for his parents along with trying to stop his grandfather while having to battle his father's murderous double.
Grant Morrison's story titled Batman and Son (2006) expands upon the Son of the Demon storyline as part of a remodeling of Batman's personality after the events of Infinite Crisis. In Morrison's version, the child Damian Wayne is the result of a tryst between Batman and Talia, during which the Dark Knight claims he was drugged when they were at the Tropic of Cancer, though Morrison later admitted the claim of drugging was a canonical error on their part. Since then however in issues of the Morrison penned Batman Incorporated, the drugging is reaffirmed and is once again part of Damian's origin.Batman Incorporated (vol. 2) #2 (June 2012) However, Batman and Talia's tryst was later shown as consensual in Peter J. Tomasi's Batman and Robin, thus the circumstances of Damian's conception can vary depending on the writers.Batman and Robin #2 (October 2012)Robin Rises: Omega #1 (July 2014)
The final issue of 52 (2008) designates the Kingdom Come alternate universe as Earth-22, thus making the Ibn al Xu'ffasch version of Bruce and Talia's son part of the DC Multiverse. Justice Society of America vol. 3 #22 (2009) reveals that he would eventually marry Nightstar with whom he would have a daughter and son, and his family has inherited the Wayne Estates after Batman's death.
Fictional character biography
Batman and Son
Damian is introduced to Bruce Wayne by his mother, where he is left in Bruce's custody. After he is brought to the Wayne Manor, Damian escapes, donning a variant Robin costume, and kills the villain Spook. This troubles his relationship with Batman, who vows never to kill.
The Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul
Beginning in Batman Annual #26 ("Head of the Demon"), Talia takes Damian to the Australian Outback, where he is tutored in the secret history of his grandfather Ra's al Ghul. They find out that White Ghost, a former servant of Ra's, plans to use him to resurrect Ra's, which would kill him in the process.
Damian goes to Wayne Manor to alert Batman, but instead finds Tim Drake, who does not believe him and engages Damian in a fight. Then the League of Assassins shows up and the two of them get captured. Ra's offers Batman a choice for the body he will take, but Batman rejects either option and instead offers a third alternative: the "Fountain of Essence" which contains the qualities of a Lazarus Pit. Batman and Ra's go in search of the fountain, leaving Tim, Damian, Nightwing, Alfred, and Talia to battle the Sensei. Damian leaves his mother and Tim to an unknown fate, while he goes off to be with his father. He ends up captured by Ra's and is nearly killed. Batman and the others manage to save him, and Talia takes her son and escapes.
A subsequent conversation between Tim and Alfred implies that Batman has carried out a DNA test on Damian. Alfred says Bruce intended to tell him the results when the time was right. At this, Tim realizes that Damian is indeed Bruce's son, and exclaims "The son of Satan is my brother?"Batman #676 (June 2008)
Batman R.I.P.
Prior to the start of Grant Morrison's "Batman R.I.P." story arc in Batman #675, Damian senses that someone is out to get Batman. In response to this, Talia begins formulating a plan involving Commissioner James Gordon, whom Talia and Damian rescue from a booby-trapped Wayne Manor while in search of Batman, who is insane and has gone missing.
Damian and Alfred race to aid Batman against the Black Glove in a commandeered Batmobile. Damian, who is driving, knocks an ambulance off a bridge without any sign of remorse or even concern. When Alfred reprimands him, Damian retorts with a backhanded threat. The only occupant of the ambulance was the Joker.
Battle for the Cowl
At the start of Batman: Battle for the Cowl, Damian is now residing in Gotham City, and living under the command of Nightwing. Where before Damian portrayed an arrogant and vicious personality, it appears the "death" of his father has regressed him to a more childlike mindset, as demonstrated when he takes the Batmobile joy-riding with an older girl. This is discovered by Oracle, who ejects the girl and takes control of the Batmobile, intent on taking Damian home. The car is blindsided by Killer Croc and Poison Ivy, who prepares to kill Damian. The older girl is later eaten by Killer Croc. Damian is saved by Nightwing who ends up being cornered by Black Mask's men until a murderous figure appears stating that he is Batman (later revealed to be Jason Todd). Although shot by Todd, Damian recovers and saves Tim Drake from falling to death inside Jason's Batcave. When Grayson hangs up his Nightwing mantle to become the newest Batman, he chooses Damian to assume the mantle of Robin by his side.
Batman: Reborn
Despite becoming Robin to Grayson's Batman, Damian reveals that he cares little for his older brother and has no respect for him as Batman and that the latter would have to earn it. In an act of defiance, Damian decides to make the Robin mantle independent from that of Batman and decides to stop Dr. Phosphorus from breaking into Project Cadmus,Batman #687 (August 2009) but fails miserably and is saved by Dick.Batman and Robin #2 (September 2009) Dick then begins to train Damian as to how to properly become the new Robin and the two develop their own unique crime-fighting style.
Damian and Dick then attack Firefly, who is attempting to kill Black Mask. Victor Zsasz defeats Robin and rescues Black Mask while Dick takes down Firefly. These events cause Hush to escape, causing Damian to grow a further hatred for the criminal. Damian is present when Dick is inducted into the JLA; upon hearing this, Damian demands to be inducted along with Dick but his demands are promptly ignored. Damian is once again saved by Dick, with the assistance of Azrael, after a man named Amon tries to sacrifice him. Sasha, now dubbed Scarlet by Todd, returns and attacks Robin, as Jason attacks Dick.Batman and Robin #5 (December 2009) The two duos battle it out until the arrival of the Flamingo, who shoots Damian in the back.Batman and Robin #6 (January 2010) Talia replaces Damian's spine,Batman and Robin #7 (March 2010) but puts in a monitor connected to his brain allowing her to control his every movement.Batman and Robin #10-11 (May - June 2010)
Red Robin In a flashback, Damian mocks Tim Drake (now Red Robin) after Dick has taken the role of Robin from Tim and given it to Damian.Red Robin #1 (August 2009) This prompts Tim to attack Damian, only to be stopped by Dick. After Tim leaves, Damian starts engaging in chess games with Hush (Thomas Elliot), visiting him secretly against Dick's orders. When Elliot asked why Damian is visiting him behind the Bat-family's back, Damian shrugs it off as a desire to keep Elliot company. Elliot surmises that Damian is rather using the resemblance to Bruce to "spend time with [his] old man".