Batman’s rogues' gallery, from Scarecrow to Bane, have all appeared in some form or fashion in a movie. Even obscure villains like Mr. Freeze have been featured in a film. Despite having an array of foes, not many A-List villains are remaining to stand toe-to-toe against Batman in the upcoming Robert Pattinson movie. Reasons such as this have speculators looking at Scott Snyder’s run on Batman and other modern story arcs that have lesser-known villains and unique storylines that could potentially come to life in the upcoming Batman film.

Batman Hush

A great starting place for new Batman readers, and what reinvigorated an older generation of fans, was the Hush story arc by Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee. In this series, Batman not only faces all of his past foes but also does so while exploring his past friendship with prestigious doctor Thomas Elliot. Running through Batman issues of #608-619, the reader is shown battles with Batman’s past foes, a love-interest with Catwoman, all while introducing a new criminal mastermind behind it all. The Hush story arc would be perfect for the big screen and many are speculating that the bandaged up figure in the latest Batman movie trailer was Hush. While this speculation remains unknown, a couple of the key issues are very affordable considering their current fair market values:

The Court of Owls

Scott Snyder’s epic changed Batman's lore forever when he revealed that a secret society was behind many of Batman’s past battles. Powerful elite families competed against the Waynes, long before Batman was even born, through the Court of Owls. The story arc revealed that Batman did not understand Gotham City as well as he thought he did and introduced readers to a new criminal syndicate behind all of his past foes. Similar to the Hush storyline, the Court of Owls served as a unifying enemy that brought Batman’s entire rogues gallery together against him. This arc would make perfect for a movie because it would introduce a new organization behind all of Gotham’s crimes than the villains of the past. The fair market value of many of the New 52's issues are slowly increasing due to easter eggs throughout the trailer hinting at a Court of Owls storyline:

Batman Year One

By the legend Frank Miller, Year One detailed the early years of Batman as he grew into the hero we know him to be today. This series depicts a struggling Batman going through growing pains as he develops both the skills and weaponry to defeat Gotham’s foes. This storyline makes the most sense as a primary story in a new Batman film as the audience would have to be reintroduced to the character with flashbacks to his origins. Further, this storyline could serve as a launch point from Batman's early years to one of the above storylines such as Hush or Court of Owls. Due to this series being slightly older than Loeb and Snyder's run, Miller's Batman Year One acquire higher prices for its key issues:

  • Batman #404, the first issue of Year One, garners an FMV of $190 at a CGC 9.8.
  • Batman #405 has a beautiful cover and garners an FMV of $130 at a CGC 9.8.

Conclusion

While speculation surrounding the upcoming film will be swirling till the day of release, it is important to keep a note of these modern story arcs because many of their key issues are currently warming up and you don't want to be too late chasing these modern books after they have spiked in prices. In fact, many of us grew up reading these titles not thinking they would ever hit the big screen. It's far more likely now than ever before that Batman film creators are looking toward modern Batman storylines.