For comic book fans of a certain age, “Knightfall” is one of the biggest Batman story arcs ever published by DC Comics. The arc is infamous for having the Caped Crusader’s back broken by the super steroid-enhanced genius Bane. It served as a major source of inspiration for Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight Rises,” and has been adapted as episodes of several animated shows. It’s a big storyline that hasn’t been given its due, until now.
When Peter Girardi, executive VP Warner Bros. Animation, took the stage at the 2026 Annecy Animation Festival to introduce the film, he recognized the magnitude of the source material.
“You all know this is a very important story in the Batman mythology,” Girardi told an enthusiastic festival crowd. “It is so big and it was so consequential to the Batman story that it takes place over three films. So this is a trilogy of films. All animated.”
The first of the trilogy, titled “Part 1: Knightfall,” premiered at Annecy to thunderous applause, with audiences responding to the humor, the gnarly action and the prominent role of the third Robin, Tim Drake.
“It’s a story that we’ve held on to for many years because we really wanted to get it right. We needed the right team together,” Girardi added.
The film stars Anson Mount (“Star Trek: Strange New Worlds”) as Batman, Michael Mando (“Spider-Man: Brand New Day”) as Bane, and Pablo Schreiber (“Halo”) as Jean-Paul Valley, aka Azrael.
The film is animated by South Korean Studio Mir Co. which previously worked on “The Legend of Korra.” The studio is no stranger to superheroes, having helmed “X-Men ‘97,” “My Adventures With Superman,” “Young Justice: Outsiders” and more. Jeff Wamester directs the film from a script by Jeremy Adams.
First thing’s first. This is a violent movie. DC is no stranger to adult animated adaptations. Ever since 2016’s “The Killing Joke,” Warner Bros. Animation has released several R-rated movies based on DC Comics, like “The Long Halloween,” and the adaptation of the “Injustice” video game. Some of these focus on the violence, others on the cursing or sexual content. “Knightfall” makes it clear it’s going to use its rating to show a violent, dangerous side of Gotham City. The movie begins with a gruesome scene where Azrael makes quick work of a group of human traffickers. With the help of flaming swords, he melts off the face of one of the gang members, before cutting another one’s hands off in a fiery blaze. Limbs and blood flow everywhere, setting the stage for a movie all about Gotham descending into hell.
The first part in the trilogy is all about showing Bane preparing to put Gotham through the ringer in order to break Batman. His reasoning being that the Caped Crusader has allowed the city to grow weak, too dependent on him to save them and unable to save themselves. This is not the Bane of Nolan’s trilogy, nor the funny Bane of the “Harley Quinn” show. This is the scariest the villain has been, a terrifyingly and freakishly hulking monster that looks like Younger Toguro from “Yu Yu Hakusho.” Not only is Bane huge and hugely strong, he’s also a dangerously smart guy, with his masterplan unraveling throughout the runtime of the film in clever ways, allowing Batman (well, Robin) to do some stellar detective work.
Bane’s plan relies on the World’s Greatest Detective being stretched too thin, and Batman has definitely seen better days. This version of the Dark Knight is stretched too thin, stressed out of his mind, tired beyond belief. After losing the second Robin, Jason Todd, Batman has taken it upon himself to fix Gotham without help, afraid to risk the life of those he cares about. Everyone around him is so concerned for him that Alfred forces Bruce to go to therapy. The character of Shondra Kinsolving from the comics is reimagined as a therapist, one who tries to get Bruce Wayne to open up about his need for help and refusal to ask for it. Her initial diagnosis of Wayne as “a rich prick with a messianic complex” got big laughs from the Annecy crowd, as this tired and erratic version of Batman showed a different side of the DC hero.
Arguably the scene-stealer of the movie is Tim Drake, the third Robin who has not got much love in past DC movies and shows. He’s witty and a rather good detective who also understands the pain Bruce has gone through recently with the death of Jason, and wants nothing but to help his idol. His witty remarks got big reactions from the festival crowd, while his brutal fight with Bane earned several gasps from the audience.
“We’ve done a lot of DC animated films based on the published material,” Girardi told the Annecy crowd before the start of the film. “This is one of the best.” This is but the first part of a trilogy, but if the crowd reactions are anything to go by, DC may have a winner on their hands.
English (US) ·