Is Batman a Fascist? Why Is He Called That in the ‘Blue Beetle’ Trailer?

The upcoming Blue Beetle movie’s trailer has just been released, and it already gave us a sneak preview of what we can expect from this new DC movie. But while the trailer focused on Jaime Reyes and his journey as a young superhero with unique powers, the final portion of the trailer elicited many different reactions from fans all over the internet because Batman was labeled a fascist by Jaime’s Uncle Rudy. So, is Batman really a fascist?

Batman may or may not be a fascist, but there’s a good reason why some people might see him as a fascist. We know that Batman protects the people from the criminal underworld of Gotham using fear. He essentially keeps the criminals under control through fear, and that’s why he may be a fascist.

The thing about the different superheroes of DC is that they have different methods for approaching how they handle their business and how they police the different criminals of the city. In Batman’s case, it can be easy to see him as a fascist due to his unorthodox approach to handling Gotham’s criminal underworld. So, with that said, let’s look at why Batman was called a fascist.

Batman and Fascism Explained

With James Gunn ready to reboot the DC cinematic universe with his own brand, we know we are still getting a few DC movies that were part of the previous regime. Blue Beetle, a popular character in the comics, is one of the characters set to see his own movie as there’s a good chance that he will be carried over to Gunn’s regime. And the trailer of Blue Beetle just came out.

As interesting as the trailer is in depicting the type of superhero that Jaime Reyes is looking to become, the final scene in the trailer caught the attention of many different fans. That’s because Batman was namedropped as the first DC superhero we know exists in Blue Beetle’s universe. But Jaime’s Uncle Rudy, played by George Lopez, quickly labeled the Caped Crusader a fascist. So, is it really true that Batman is a fascist?

We can’t really say that Batman is a fascist because he has never been in a position wherein he was directly in control over Gotham or the people that live in it. However, some indications could suggest that he may be fascist in how he approaches his job and performs his role as a superhero.

Batman has always been called the Dark Knight for a very good reason, as he operates during the night and is known for having the qualities of an antihero. Of course, the reason why he is also known as an antihero is the fact that he uses methods that may be unorthodox. While Superman uses his powers to defeat criminals during the day while inspiring the people of Metropolis as the symbol of peace in the world, Batman uses fear and brutal methods when handling criminals.

Fascism is often described as a dictatorial way of leadership because an authoritative figure has supreme control over a group of people. In that sense, Batman can be called a fascist in how he approaches his responsibilities over the criminals of Gotham City.

We know that Gotham City is often described as the worst of the worst when it comes to how crime-ridden it is and how the criminal underworld is often the one in control over the city. As such, Batman is often quite brutal in his approach when dealing with the city’s criminals, as he knows he has to fight fire with fire. He doesn’t kill criminals but is often known for being harsh in how he handles the criminal underworld of Gotham, as using any means other than killing has never been beyond him.

Of course, we also know that Batman tends to suppress the criminals of Gotham using fear. He makes the criminals fear him through the means that he uses to police the crime-infested city where he grew up in. As Commissioner Gordon said in the movie The Dark Knight, Batman is the hero that Gotham deserves because the city itself is dark. That is why Batman uses an approach that can be somewhat dark regarding how he deals with the criminals of Gotham.

In a way, his methods can be called fascism. But that is the only way Batman can keep the peace in Gotham. He would have used any means other than fear and brutality if he knew that there were other methods to deal with the likes of the Joker and the different gangs of Gotham. But because he knows that he needs to be the Dark Knight to keep the streets of Gotham safe for its citizens, his approach can be quite similar to fascism.

Why Did Uncle Rudy Call Batman a Fascist?

So, while we can’t really say whether or not Batman is a fascist because this tends to be a subjective topic, depending on whose perspective we are using, we can’t deny that Uncle Rudy in the Blue Beetle trailer still called Batman a fascist. So, why is it that Uncle Rudy called Batman a fascist?

Well, to put it bluntly, this was how the movie used to catch the audience’s attention and create a buzz on social media. The people behind the Blue Beetle movie know that Batman is arguably the most popular DC character and has some of the most rabid fans on the internet. So, by calling Batman a fascist through the Uncle Rudy character, the trailer generated enough noise on the internet.

Of course, in terms of the in-universe perspective, we don’t really know for certain why Uncle Rudy called Batman a fascist because he might see the character in a way that’s different than the way other people see him. After all, Henry Cavill’s Superman character wasn’t exactly in agreement with how Batman was handling the criminals of Gotham, and the same might be true regarding how Uncle Rudy saw Batman’s methods.

But we believe this scene was simply added to the Blue Beetle movie to confirm that Batman exists in that universe (we don’t know which version) and generate buzz and reactions on the internet. After all, other than Superman, no other DC character can generate more reactions from fans than Batman.