Batman & Bill

Batman is one of the best known comic book characters.  Most people also know that Bob Kane created the character, but that isn't the whole truth.

In 1939, after the success of the Superman comics, Kane had an idea for a new superhero: the Bat-Man.  He brought in his friend Bill Finger to help define the character.  Kane's contract with Action Comics (which became DC Comics) gave him sole credit for the character, even though Finger wrote the stories and Kane did the drawings.

Finger's contributions to Batman were largely unknown until Marc Tyler Nobleman began researching the origins of the Batman comics.  After 75 years in obscurity, can Nobleman and Finger's descendants get Finger's contributions to Batman acknowledged?


Batman has a long history in the public spotlight, starring in a long-running comic strip along with a series of live-action and animated movies and TV shows.  All of these programs list Bob Kane as the creator of the strip.  When Nobleman began researching Batman's origin, he discovered the name Bill Finger, and many comic book artists/writers knew the name.  Nobleman was intrigued and changed his story to focus on Finger and started researching him.  His book, "Bill the Boy Wonder: The Secret co-creator of Batman" was published in 2012.

Nobleman's book serves as the basis for this documentary.  It features interviews with Nobleman, comic book artists, and people who knew Finger.  It also features interviews (recordings and TV footage) of Kane talking about Batman.

It is a fascinating story about the man behind Batman... the man who created/developed many of the details that made/make Batman so intriguing.  Kane and Finger were friends and polar opposites.  Kane enjoyed the spotlight and died a wealthy icon while Finger only gave one interview in his lifetime and died penniless and alone.  The filmmakers compare and contrast these figures.  Kane doesn't always come off well... denying Finger's role in the 1960s, but also wrote in his autobiography that Finger deserves credit for the character... without trying to fix it.

Ultimately, in 2015 DC Comics reached a settlement with Finger's granddaughter Athena Finger.  Finger is now publicly acknowledged alongside Kane in all Batman TV shows and movies, beginning with TV's Gotham (in Season 2) and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, and all future projects involving Batman.

The documentary is produced by Hulu and available for streaming through their site.  It is worth checking out!

Batman: The Movie (1966) / Batman (1989) / Batman Returns (1992) / The Dark Knight (2008) / The Dark Knight Rises (2012) / The Lego Batman Movie (2017)
TV: The Batman

Batman & Bill (2017) 93 minutes
Director: Don Argott & Sheena M. Joyce
Starring: Marc Tyler Nobleman
Thomas Andrae
Althea Finger
Bill Finger
Carmine Infantino
Bob Kane
Travis Langley
Todd McFarlane
Jerry Robinson
Arlen Schumer
Edith Lyn Simons
Roy Thomas
Michael Ulsan
Jerry Robinson