This 8-Year-Old Batman Movie With a 50% RT is Quietly Dominating Streaming

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Kevin Conroy as Batman in Batman and Harley Quinn

Jason is an award-winning journalist whose writing career dates back to when he developed the ability to use a crayon. He, most notably, worked previously as a "professional fan," as he likes to call it, at CinemaBlend, for which he wrote about anything and everything under the pop culture umbrella... especially Batman. His passion for the art of cinema began even earlier, stemming from repeat viewings of The Wizard of Oz.
This initially led him to pursue a career in filmmaking -- and even work briefly in the industry as an extra in the straight-to-video family film, Alice Upside Down -- before deciding that his talents would be better served discussing and showing appreciation for the various forms of entertainment he is passionate about.

Not every DC movie, even those related to Batman, became a runaway success right out of the cave. Take, for example, Batman and Harley Quinn.

The 2017 release, co-written by Batman: The Animated Series co-creator Bruce Timm, is widely considered to be among the worst animated Batman movies ever made. Nonetheless, Batman & Harley Quinn appears to be impressing some audiences based on its recent streaming statistics.

According to FlixPatrol, the film is one of the top 10 most-watched movies on Apple TV this week, which takes into account the chart positions in both the United States and Canada. However, the sudden popularity of Batman and Harley Quinn may come as a surprise to many fans of all things related to Gotham City lore.

The movie was a comparative financial disappointment, having earned about $39,091 worldwide during its one-night theatrical release, which was set up in response to the one-night, $3.8 million gross of Batman: The Killing Joke the previous year. Then again, it would earn $2.2 million in DVD and Blu-ray sales domestically.

Still, Batman and Harley Quinn was not favored very well by critics, who panned the film's unfocused balance of action with comedy, overreliance on raunchy humor of a childish degree and a frustratingly abrupt ending. The criticisms would result in a 50% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 51% audience rating, reflecting fans' own disappointment.

To make matters even more disheartening, Batman and Harley Quinn is one of the final movies featuring one of the greatest Batman voice actors, Kevin Conroy, as The Dark Knight before his untimely death in 2022 at 66 years old. He was also joined by his Batman: The Animated Series co-star, Loren Lester, returning as Dick "Nightwing" Grayson, but filling in as the Clown Princess of Crime for her sole portrayal of the character is Melissa Rauch of The Big Bang Theory fame.

Taking place in the same continuity as Batman: The Animated Series, director Sam Liu's Batman and Harley Quinn sees the Caped Crusader and Nightwing uncover a plot orchestrated by Poison Ivy (Paget Brewster) and Floronic Man (Kevin Michael Richardson). To track the ecoterrorists down, the duo is forced to enlist the help of one of Ivy's closest friends, Harley Quinn, who is no longer with the Joker and makes a living impersonating herself at an eatery called Superbabes.

Harley Quinn's Meteoric Rise In Popularity

Nightwing, Harley Quinn and Batman in the Batmobile in Batman and Harley Quinn

Batman and Harley Quinn may have become branded by fans and critics as a blemish on the otherwise rich and rewarding history of the DC Animated Universe. However, before its release, the film was one of the most highly anticipated animated DC movies since, well, 2016's Batman: The Killing Joke, which also proved divisive for different reasons.

It is easy to understand why it inspired so much excitement early on when considering the latter name in the title. At the time of its release, Harley Quinn had practically reached the peak of her popularity.

The character would strike a chord with fans almost as soon as she debuted on Batman: The Animated Series (in which she was originally voiced by the late Arleen Sorkin) in 1992, which eventually led to her official DC Comics induction the following year. However, she really began to take off with mainstream audiences in 2016, following Margot Robbie's universally acclaimed portrayal in the divisive Suicide Squad.

The Clown Princess of Crime started showing up in more animated features, including the additional 2017 release of The LEGO Batman Movie (starring Jenny Slate in the role), before receiving her own self-titled animated series, led by Melissa Rauch's Big Bang co-star, Kaley Cuoco, that premiered on DC Universe in 2019 before later moving to HBO Max. In 2020, Robbie's iteration received her own DCEU installment called Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) before returning once more in James Gunn's The Suicide Squad.

Fans can say what they want about Batman and Harley Quinn, but, in some regards, they also asked for it. Based on its recent streaming success, it seems that more people are asking for it now than ever.

Batman and Harley Quinn is also available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.