What martial arts does Batman use?

Formerly known as Bruce Wayne, Batman is DC’s most prized superhero alongside Superman and is known for his excellent background in martial arts. In fact, Batman’s martial arts skill set is so long and illustrious that we won’t even be mentioning all of the disciplines that he knows. Instead, we’ll be focusing on the more mainstream arts that Batman uses, as well as the ones he’s most commonly associated with.

The reason for this is that he’s known for certain arts much more than other ones. Also, since Batman has been around since the 1930s, it’s fair to say that a lot has been written about him over the years. Due to the sheer number of comics on him, it’s no surprise that he’s so skilled at martial arts. In fact, the exact number that is often stated is that Batman is an expert in 127 different martial arts. This is quite unrealistic for obvious reasons; as even with his resources it would take tens of years to truly master a single martial art, let alone 127. Not only this but Batman is also widely regarded in the DC universe as the best martial artist in the world.

This tag has been given to him by various superheroes, including Superman. You could say that this is needed though, as Batman is a mortal after all so he has to be skilled at fighting to make up for his lack of superpowers. Read on for more information about the best martial arts that the caped crusader uses in battle.

Batman knows Judo

In some of the comics, it’s shown that Batman is well versed in the Japanese art of Judo. As seen in the extract below, Batman performs a standing armlock on his opponent and brags of years of practice in Judo. This particular move even looks a bit like an Aikido or Japanese Ju Jitsu technique which are both big on standing joint locks. Nonetheless, as Batman explicitly says he does Judo, that’s what we know.

Batman is also pictured in some of the modern comic books wearing a Judo gi with a black belt, which obviously says a lot about his skill level. Whilst Batman may not be strong or skilled enough to use his Judo on someone like Bane, he’s still capable of using it on people like Joker who have a normal body size.

Batman knows Aikido and Japanese Ju Jitsu

As mentioned regarding his Judo, Batman is also skilled at Aikido and Japanese Ju Jitsu and can often be seen doing wrist lock throws and standing joint locks. These days, both Aikido and JJJ are both sometimes frowned upon within the martial arts community for lacking realism. Nonetheless, within the Gotham universe, it seems that Batman has mastered these arts and can use them effectively.

Whether it’s throwing opponents to the floor by their wrists, or whether it’s disarming weapons with his hands from close range, Batman can put these martial arts skills to good use. Let’s face it – whilst many dismiss Aikido for its practical reasons, it does genuinely look good and flashy during movie fight scenes.

In The Dark Knight Rises 2012 movie, you can see aspects of Aikido and JJJ when Batman fights Bane outside. At one point, he uses wrist control to stop Bane from punching him, before reversing Bane’s power and countering. These concepts are often taught in Aikido about reactions and timing.

Batman knows Karate

Perhaps one of Batman’s most popular martial arts that he uses is Karate. This often features in both the comics as well as the films. When fighting, he often uses Karate techniques such as the Side Kick to access the head of the opponents which is commonly used in movies with choreographers to make fight scenes look good.

His Karate skill are also referenced in the comics and he also uses his fast Karate skills to defeat multiple attackers. This is handy, as Karate often teaches how to dodge and block punches which is obviously a big deal when you’re outnumbered. Generally, Karate was found more in the 90s movies before the choreography turned more towards boxing.

Batman knows Ninjutsu

Batman is formerly trained by various people in the comics, whereas the movies use R’as Al Ghul as his main teacher. In the books, he is trained the art of assassination by David Cain and R’as Al Ghul amongst others in the form of Ninjutsu. This involves tracking people down, detective work, explosives, and deception.

It’s no secret that Batman is an expert at hiding at night and keeping his identity secret. These are all key skills when he goes about his job and this wouldn’t be possible without his training. Although Ninjutsu isn’t explicitly referenced, these skills all originated in the Japanese art of Ninjutsu which basically trained people into becoming Ninjas.

In some ways, you could claim that Batman acts like a modern-day super Ninja and his hordes of gadgets and tools also link back to the Japanese Ninjutsu ideology of using technology to your advantage. Arguably, Batman’s best martial art is his Ninjutsu, even if it’s more of a mindset and lifestyle rather than a singular, physical skill.

Batman knows Brazilian Jiu Jitsu

In the Batman trilogy movies, it’s also shown that Batman is proficient in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. From takedowns to escaping bad positions on the ground, to reversals – Batman knows how to handle himself on the floor. Earlier, we looked at his Judo skills which tie in nicely with his BJJ as the two are similar in many ways. The video below also shows a Judo throw on one of Jokers goons as well as a wrestling takedown on Bane.

Mostly though, Batman’s BJJ is very basic but effective. Unlike certain other fighting styles that he adopts, his BJJ is more fundamentally sound and based on survival rather than offering anything for the cameras. Arguably, this is the way BJJ should be and you could even make a claim that the cinematography in the later films moved away to a more realistic style of fighting compared to the more scripted style shown in the earlier movies. Actor Robert Pattison also trained BJJ whilst in the build up to his role as Batman as well.

Batman knows Wing Chun

A lot of Batman’s fight scenes in all of the movies rely on Wing Chun and emphasize his skills in trapping. This is a Wing Chun term that describes blocking strikes from close range and replying with ones of your own during the same movement. This fighting style was popularized by the likes of Wing Chun, and is probably used in the movies as it looks pretty cool.

One instance of this is against Bane where Batman successfully uses his own forearms to block strikes from Bane. You could also argue that aspects of this form of defense are also taken from Karate. This form of fighting also compliments Batman’s other martial arts and is a good skill set to call upon whilst fighting from close range.

Batman knows Boxing

Returning to the comics, it’s learned that Batman is trained in boxing by Wildcat (also known as Ted Grant). As far as DC heroes go, Wildcat is probably the best at boxing and has quite a few comic strips where he’s seen fighting in the ring. Obviously, if you’re going to fight people then boxing is a great martial art to learn and like Karate, is good when facing multiple opponents.

Returning to the movies, it’s understood that Batman knows boxing in the later films as once again it ties into the idea of a more realistic fighting approach that is basic but effective, rather than being showy but unrealistic. In the comics too, Batman can often be seen knocking out goons with his heavy right hook.

How good is Batman at martial arts?

As mentioned, he is said to be the best martial artist in the DC universe and is spoken highly of by many superheroes. He’s also said to know 127 martial arts which also backs this point up. It should also be noted that as he’s only human, he needs these skills to survive and unlike most superheroes, he also has a huge backstory about his training and it’s often referenced. With this said, Batman can be considered an expert in most martial arts, and his fighting style is incredibly eclectic. As a result, he is one of the most fearsome martial fighters on the planet and comes with a fearsome reputation.