32% Think This Batman Villain Deserves To Be In A Live-Action Movie – Do We Agree?

(Welcome to Survey Says, a feature where we conduct a movie-related survey for a random group of people and explain why they're completely right, completely wrong, or somewhere in-between.)

They say a hero is only as good as his villain and the Dark Knight has some of the very best. At this point, there have been quite a few Batman movies and many of his Big Bads have already been given the live-action treatment. There have been multiple versions of Riddler, Penguin, and Catwoman, and adaptations of other Bat villains that range from absolutely incredible to utterly forgettable. We've seen several iterations of Joker, who honestly, I'm hoping takes a break from Batman films for a while, because the Caped Crusader has one of the strongest rogues galleries in comics, and there are plenty of others who have yet to get their due. 

With that in mind, we've got Very Official survey results from Bat-fans who weighed in on this crucial topic. Which Batman villain did these 619 individuals feel is most deserving of a live-action appearance?

Somewhat surprisingly, Mad Hatter took the top spot here, coming in with a whopping 32.47% of the vote. From a concept by Bob Kane, the Mad Hatter was created in 1948 by Lew Sayre Schwartz and Bill Finger. Obsessed with the Lewis Carroll character of the same name, Jervis Tetch's ability to mind control others — though not introduced until much later — makes him a formidable foe. There aren't a ton of exceptional Mad Hatter comic stories, but it would be cool to see "Perchance to Dream" adapted into live-action. The season 1 episode of "Batman: The Animated Series" sees Tetch trap Batman in a dream world that feels all too real and it's a favorite among fans.

Trailing behind in second place with 16.48% is Phantasm. Though recently introduced into the main universe of DC Comics, the character was created by Alan Burnett, Paul Dini, and Bruce Timm for the animated feature "Batman: Mask of the Phantasm." The 1993 film is widely considered to be one of the best movies centering on the Caped Crusader. Caution for the near-30-year-old spoiler that follows, but the villain taking out mob bosses in the present actually turns out to be Andrea Beaumont, a long lost love from Bruce's past. If you ask me, bringing Phantasm into a live-action movie is unnecessary. "Batman: Mask of the Phantasm" simply cannot be replicated.

Red Hood is hot on Phantasm's heels with 15.67% of the vote. Jason Todd, the second Robin, had been dead since the late '80s when Judd Winick and Doug Mahnke resurrected him as the Red Hood in 2005. Jason is one of Batman's most compelling villains due to the complicated history between the two. That said, you can't introduce Jason Todd without Dick Grayson having an entire arc before him and there's no way I'd be okay with the Batman movies skipping my beloved Nightwing to bring in the Red Hood anytime soon. Plus, this story has already played out in the excellent 2010 animated film "Batman: Under the Red Hood."

Although I'd personally love to see Man-Bat or Solomon Grundy in a live-action Batman movie, they were both somehow beat out by Hugo Strange, who isn't nearly as interesting. The criminal mastermind comes in with 11.15% of the vote, while Man-Bat is close behind with 10.50% and Solomon Grundy is next with 8.56%. Dr. Kirk Langstrom, aka Man-Bat, is something of a tragic figure. A bat/human hybrid as a result of experimenting on himself, Langstrom is constantly at war with the beast within. As for the villain who was "born on a Monday," immortal revivified corpse Solomon Grundy is, like Man-Bat, occasionally an antihero. Both characters could do well with live-action portrayals, though I'm rooting more for Man-Bat.

Coming in dead last with only 5.17% of the vote is Hush. One of the more recent Batman villains, Hush has been at the heart of a couple of great Dark Knight stories, though there aren't too many comics to draw from for him. It could be difficult to adapt the eponymous 2002 tale in which he debuted since it pretty much plays out like the Dark Knight's greatest hits and cramming all those characters into a live-action movie would be impossible. There was a recent animated version, though it made some divisive changes to the original arc. Of course, there are other villains who could be featured in future films as well. The real question is: where is Clayface and why didn't he make the cut here?