Batman Beyond (also known as Batman of the Future in some territories) is an American animated cyberpunk superhero television series based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, and serving as the sequel to both Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures. Created and developed by Paul Dini, Bruce Timm, and Alan Burnett and produced by Warner Bros. Television Animation, the series began airing on January 10, 1999 on The WB's Sunday Night lineup as a two-part pilot.
The series follows the exploits of teenager Terry McGinnis, who becomes the new Batman for the city of Gotham in the near future. Terry is aided and mentored by the retired Batman, Bruce Wayne, as he faces a variety of criminals including several new supervillains. Despite being conceived as a kid-friendly Batman series by Warner Bros. Animation, it ended up being darker than its predecessor Batman: The Animated Series,Batman Beyond: Making of (DVD) yet went on to receive critical acclaim and gained a cult following.
Batman Beyond ran for three seasons, concluding with a direct-to-video film, Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker. The decision to end production on the series came due to Warner Bros. Animation opting to favor pushing forward production for the Justice League animated series, though with Batman Beyond featuring crossovers with additional shows in the DC Animated Universe.
Plot In the then-future year of 2019, Bruce Wayne is in his sixties and still fighting crime as Batman, despite suffering recurring health issues relating to his age and past injuries. During a rescue of a kidnapped heiress, Bruce suffers a heart attack and, at the risk of being killed by a criminal, betrays his cardinal rule by threatening him with a gun, the weapon used to murder his parents and motivate him to become Batman in the first place. Realizing that he will inevitably have to break his strict code to never kill for survival if he continues to fight crime, Bruce reluctantly decides to permanently retire from crime fighting to avoid becoming a killer. By this point, his butler and confidant, Alfred Pennyworth, and additional colleagues, such as Lucius Fox and James Gordon, have since died of natural causes while his partners, Dick Grayson, Barbara Gordon and Tim Drake are still alive and have moved on after retiring from their crime-fighting duties as Nightwing, Batgirl and Robin, respectively. All of his rogues' gallery, if not still incarcerated or residing at Arkham Asylum, are either reformed members of society, missing or in exile, or dead. Bruce has also severed ties with Superman and the Justice League. After being ousted from leadership of Wayne Enterprises, Bruce Wayne lost his family legacy to a corporate takeover by Powers Technology, resulting in the birth of Wayne-Powers under the ruthless control of Derek Powers.
Twenty years later, Bruce lives alone in Wayne Manor with only the company of his Great Dane, Ace. One night, rebellious teenager Terry McGinnis is chased by thugs onto the lawn of Wayne Manor, and he and Bruce fight them together, but Bruce has another heart attack shortly afterwards. Terry takes Bruce inside and takes care of him. Exploring the mansion, Terry discovers the Batcave and asks Bruce to let him take up his mantle.
Terry's decision to become Batman stems from sharing a similar origin story to Bruce, in that his father, Warren McGinnis, is murdered after learning of an illegal weapons project being conducted at Wayne-Powers. Bruce grants Terry a high-tech Batsuit he made shortly before and used up until his retirement, granting him increased strength and agility, flight capabilities, stealth, and enhanced sensor systems, with Bruce allowing him to use it not only to get justice for his father's murder, but also to prevent the illegal weapon being manufactured being sold to a foreign power. His actions lead to Bruce accepting him as the new Batman and providing him cover for his work under the pretense of Terry doing part-time work for him outside of school hours. Despite the two having moments where they differ in methods they also gain respect for each other's work as Batman.
Terry mainly lives with his remaining family—his mother, Mary, who was divorced from Warren around the time of his death; and his brother, Matt—while dating fellow student Dana Tan, though his life as Batman creates complications to their relationship. Alongside Bruce, Terry is aided in his life by Max Gibson, a close friend and highly intelligent student who uncovers his secret several weeks after he becomes Batman, serving in a role similar to Alfred Pennyworth. Apart from Max, Terry's role as Batman is also known to Barbara Gordon, who aided Bruce as Batgirl before parting ways with him to become the Gotham City Police Department's police commissioner following her father's death. While initially at odds with Terry—and less tolerant of him compared to her father, who greatly trusted Bruce during his time as Batman—due to his young age, perceived recklessness, and an old grudge towards Bruce for his cold behaviour towards her and his other partners during his time as Batman, she develops a begrudging respect towards him, even allowing him to assist her when needed. Like Bruce, Terry develops his own rogues' gallery amongst the criminals he brings to justice, and also faces some of Bruce's own surviving enemies.
Characters
Main characters Terry McGinnis / Batman (voiced by Will Friedle) is the current Batman and a former juvenile delinquent. Under the pretense of doing errands for Bruce, Terry fights crime as the new Batman. In Justice League Unlimited, he discovers that he is genetically Bruce Wayne's son and was meant to be his successor as Batman.
Bruce Wayne (voiced by Kevin Conroy) is the original Batman and Terry's mentor and armourer. During his final mission as Batman, Bruce suffered a heart attack that forced him to use a gun in self-defense. Abhorred by this, he hung up his cape and cowl. At some point, Wayne Enterprises merged with Powers Technology, with Derek Powers becoming CEO. When Terry becomes the new Batman, Bruce monitors his activities from the Batcave. Following the presumed death of Derek Powers and the arrest of Paxton Powers, Bruce retakes control of Wayne Enterprises.
Maxine "Max" Gibson (voiced by Cree Summer) is a genius high schooler and friend of Terry's. She discovers his secret identity early on in the series, and from then on occasionally helps Batman in an Alfred-like role.
Ace (vocal effects provided by writer Robert Goodman's dog) is Bruce Wayne's pet Great Dane, who was formerly a stray before Bruce encountered and adopted him. Fiercely loyal to Bruce and distrustful of Terry at first, he eventually develops an improving bond with Terry as the series progresses.
Terry's family Warren McGinnis (voiced by Michael Gross) is Terry's father. Warren worked as a research scientist at Wayne-Powers. When Warren and his wife got a divorce, he gained custody of Terry. Warren is killed by Mr. Fixx at the start of the series.
Mary McGinnis (voiced by Teri Garr) is the mother of Terry and the ex-wife of Warren. She works as an astronomer at Astro-Tech. After Warren is killed by Mr. Fixx, Terry moves in with his mother.
Matt McGinnis (voiced by Ryan O'Donohue) is Terry's younger brother. Always looking to get his brother in trouble, Matt is ironically a big fan of Batman.
Recurring characters Dana Tan (voiced by Lauren Tom) is Terry's girlfriend. She is Chinese American and had a hard time accepting his responsibilities as Bruce Wayne's employee initially, but became more understanding regarding his frequent absences.
Barbara Gordon (voiced by Stockard Channing in season 1, Angie Harmon in seasons 2 and 3 and Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, Tara Strong as the young Barbara Gordon/Batgirl in Return of the Joker) is the police commissioner of Gotham and the former Batgirl. She is the daughter of former police commissioner James Gordon and assumed the position following his death.
Melanie Walker / Ten (voiced by Olivia d'Abo) is a member of the Royal Flush Gang and an on-off love interest of Terry.
Sam Young (voiced by Paul Winfield) is a Gotham district attorney and Barbara's husband.
Howard Groote (voiced by Max Brooks) is a nerdy student at Hamilton Hill High School.
Bobbi "Blade" Sommer (voiced by Melissa Disney) is the most popular girl at Terry's school. She is portrayed as being stereotypically shallow and manipulative.
Chelsea Cunningham (voiced by Yvette Lowental in earlier appearances, Rachael Leigh Cook in later appearances) is a Hamilton High student and the former girlfriend of Nelson Nash.
Nelson Nash (voiced by Seth Green) is an athlete and bully at Terry's school, who eventually matures and becomes more friendly towards him during the series. He seems to be popular with girls, but never has a steady girlfriend.
Supporting characters Justice League Unlimited is the series' incarnation of the Justice League. Superman (voiced by Christopher McDonald) is a founding member of the Justice League and an old friend of Bruce Wayne. Aquagirl (voiced by Jodi Benson) is an Atlantean princess and daughter of Aquaman. Big Barda (voiced by Farrah Forke) is a former member of the Female Furies of Apokolips. Kai-Ro / Green Lantern (voiced by Lauren Tom) is a Tibetan boy and the Green Lantern of Space Sector 2814. Micron (voiced by Wayne Brady) is an African-American superhero similar to Ray Palmer / Atom. Warhawk (voiced by Peter Onorati) is the son of Green Lantern (John Stewart) and Hawkgirl and successor of Hawkman.
Zeta (voiced by Gary Cole in his first appearance, Diedrich Bader in later appearances) is an android created by the government for infiltration and assassination who becomes a fugitive on the run from the NSA after unexpectedly developing a conscience. He later received a spin-off series, The Zeta Project. Rosalie "Ro" Rowan (voiced by Julie Nathanson) is a teenage runaway who joins Zeta in his quest for freedom.
Villains Derek Powers / Blight (voiced by Sherman Howard) is a megalomaniacal businessman and father of Paxton Powers, whose company Powers Technology merged with Wayne Enterprises years before, around the time of Wayne's retirement as Batman. After accidentally being exposed to an aerosolized viral mutagen he created when Wayne's successor interfered, Powers is treated with radiation, which combines with it to give him a translucent skeletal appearance and radiation-based powers. He is forced to have artificial skin coated over his body to conceal his condition as a stopgap measure while finding a cure. (voiced by George Takei) is Derek Powers' right-hand man who killed Warren McGinnis for learning sensitive information about Powers' nerve gas. He is later killed in a crash during his fight with Batman. Dr. Stephanie Lake (voiced by Linda Hamilton) is a Wayne-Powers scientist. She works with Derek Powers to perform cloning experiments with Mr. Freeze. (voiced by Tress MacNeille) is Powers' aid and confidante. She remains his only ally after Paxton exposes his secret.
(voiced by Cary Elwes in "Ascension", Parker Stevenson in "King's Ransom") is the estranged son of Derek Powers who takes over his position as CEO of Wayne-Powers after exposing his secret identity. Unlike his father, Paxton neglects his duties as CEO and squanders the company's money for his leisure. Paxton is arrested after his collusion with the Royal Flush Gang is exposed, with Bruce Wayne retaking control of his company. (voiced by Gabrielle Carteris) is Paxton Powers' personal assistant, driver, bodyguard, and masseuse. She is revealed to be in a relationship with the King of the Royal Flush Gang. The two conspire to steal Paxton's secret collection of stolen pre-Columbian antiques and eventually elope together.