LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is the latest DC superhero game on shelves, and it adds a new star as the voice of Batman. TT Games' new LEGO title is a tribute to all things the Dark Knight, crafting an original story pieced together with moments from the DC hero's long history. Shai Matheson takes on the task of voicing Batman in the game, joining the likes of Kevin Conroy, Troy Baker, and Will Arnett in the lineup of actors to have voiced Bruce Wayne.
In an interview with The Direct, Shai Matheson revealed how he found his universal Batman voice for LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, the advice he received from The Witcher star Doug Cockle, and which DC character he'd like LEGO Batman to crossover with.
With Legacy of the Dark Knight paying homage to so many different iterations of Batman across decades of the character's life, Matheson had a big task in finding a voice that was "all the previous Batmans, but none of the previous Batmans." The actor shared that TT Games was going for "something completely new," and that part of the reason he landed the role was that he didn't try to emulate too much of what past actors had done as Batman.
Matheson added that keeping up the Batman voice, which he delivers in a deep register, was challenging. So, he reached out to Doug Cockle, the actor who voices Geralt of Rivia, for help. Having auditioned for a part in The Witcher games years earlier, Matheson said, "It was a tiny bit emotional for me to reach out to him and get that advice."
On top of acting talk, Matheson noted his favorite Batman moments in LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight ("There's so many scenes that are literally, frame by frame,"), the missing things he would have loved to see included, and which DC character he hopes his Batman will meet in the future: "It's such a cliche... but I love Superman."
LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight is playable now on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S, with a Nintendo Switch 2 version available later this year.
How Shai Matheson Found a Universal Batman Voice
“What They Needed Was a Batman That Encapsulates All of Those Things, but Isn’t Any of Those Things.”
- The Direct: "What I love about the game is that it pays homage to so many different parts of Batman's history and different iterations of him. How did you go about finding, I suppose, a universal Batman voice?"
Shai Matheson: Obviously, this is all credit to the writers for just doing an amazing job of somehow managing to take a lot of existing elements of mainstream Batman lore and combining them into one story, which is just an unbelievable task... So, I guess what they needed, and what I was there to accommodate, was a Batman that encapsulates all of those things, but isn't any of those things. So in a way, being all the previous Batmans, but none of the previous Batmans.
And also in our story, unlike most of the others, we go over 20 years of his life. Right from vindictive young Bruce Wayne to old grizzled Batman/Bruce Wayne... So basically, we also had to sort of find a voice that can start young and old, but without changing too much, so there was all of that.
After I auditioned on my first session, they played me some of my audition back, and said 'what we loved about what you did in the audition was that you didn't try and sound like any other Batman', and in my head I was going, I definitely did try and sound like what I thought was Batman, and then I got what they were going for... They were going for something completely new.
Voice Acting Advice From The Witcher
“I Love This Full Circle Moment From Then to Now...”
- The Direct: "The voice acting community is typically quite a close-knit community. When you were hired to voice Batman, did you reach out to anyone who had voiced a superhero role before, just to get some advice or hear about their experience?"
Shai Matheson: I'm quite good friends with Doug Cockle, and I did reach out to him. I didn't tell him who I was going to play, but famously, Doug Cockle plays The Witcher, and he sits down there [vocally] for a lot of the game. And that's such a challenge as an actor to stay in that register, because, you know, as human beings, we go up, we go down, we dance all around the voice, and you have to just stay there and do the whole gamut of feelings using that sort of register, and it's such a challenge.
Doug, obviously, is a master of it, he's created such an iconic character, and so I asked him 'what do you do? How do you, how do you emote, how do you make small, like big changes? How do you scream?' And he said, 'Hey, there's no easy fix. You just do it. You just have to trust your instincts and just do it. It's hard.' I was like, 'Doug, I came to you for advice, and your advice is just try harder'.
Matheson revealed he had auditioned to voice Geralt of Rivia many years ago but confessed, "It was my first big game, and I just didn't know what I was doing." He added that his ability to voice Batman now and get that advice from Cockle was a "full circle moment:"
Matheson: So my first big audition for a game ever was to be the Witcher, when they were, for a second, thinking about replacing Doug, and then they didn't replace Doug, everything worked out, he could do it. I think there was some sort of like availability thing. So I got a little consolation prize role in The Witcher 2, which I then came in and tried to do in a very low register, and I just couldn't do it, and I wasn't experienced enough. It was my first big game, and I just didn't know what I was doing. I was relegated to the world of additional voices, and that was quite traumatizing.
I love this full circle moment from then to now, reaching out to Doug for my biggest game that I've ever done. And now I can do it, and now it's in my wheelhouse, and I loved that. So it was a tiny bit emotional for me to reach out to him and get that advice.
The Best Batman Moments in LEGO Form
“There Are So Many Scenes That Are Literally, Frame by Frame, From Their Original Movies...”
- The Direct: "Obviously, you're a big Batman fan. What were some of the moments you were so excited to see get translated into the game?"
Shai Matheson: There's so many scenes that are literally, frame by frame, from their original movies. My original gateway to Batman was Batman 89 and then Batman Returns is my favorite film of all time, full stop. So to see the bits from those, we have the whole Jack Nicholson scene [with] the Joker coming into the museum. We have the Catwoman 'meow', flipping around, just so many amazing parts from those films that come to life. Then there's the Tumbler chase from The Dark Knight with the Joker, that's just incredible. I mean, it's such an incredible piece of cinema in The Dark Knight, and [the fact] they managed to sort of replicate it here in a Lego game. It's just unreal.
The car chase from The Batman, where we see almost frame by frame when we capture the Penguin, but just with little LEGO touches, you know... What a joy just to relive your childhood through this thing, but without it ever seeming like fan service or just an empty recreation. It manages to keep its own identity in our game.
- The Direct: "They barely missed anything out, but there are some parts of Batman lore that still could have made it into the game. Is there anything that you really wish you had seen in there?"
Matheson: I love the Riddler, the ending of Batman Forever, [with] that Riddler lair, his sort of big elaborate space, when he's got his fancy shiny outfit that could have been some fun. But I guess in this universe, the Riddler exists as this voice, same as in [Batman] Arkham, which kind of works perfectly, so maybe there's something to mine in the future, like getting a sort of Jim Carrey-ish type of Riddler in there...
But I mean, Batman has existed for 86 years, and it's been iconic for that whole time. There are so many stories here that we could have told, so at some point you have to do some editing and pick, and I think they just nailed the balance perfectly. I hope the fact that if anyone's saying they're missing anything in it, it's because they love what they're seeing so much that they go, 'oh, wouldn't it be cool if we did this?'
LEGO Batman Sequel & DC Crossover Hopes
"It’s Such a Cliche To Say Superman, but I Love Superman..."
- The Direct: "Let's say, hypothetically, there's another LEGO Batman game. Which DC character would you love to see your version of Batman interact with?"
Shai Matheson: I mean, I know it's such a cliche to say Superman, but I love Superman... I would love to see a tried-and-tested Batman and Superman working together, working against each other. I know it's a cliche, but it's such a cool mix, because they're so different.
I guess in the LEGO world, Batman isn't as dark as in the proper DC world, and so it could be interesting to see him face up with Lex Luthor, you know, face up against someone who's a lot more clever and sort of calculated and slimy than the maniacal ones that we have in our game.
- The Direct: "It's still very early, but have they spoken to you at all about maybe returning, reprising your role, doing more as this character?"
Matheson: I am so overjoyed to just be part of this at the moment. Just the reception that this game is getting, I think is so incredible. I don't think anyone is thinking about the future, we're just enjoying the moment. So, I'd love to do it again, I would absolutely be there in a heartbeat.
The full interview with Shai Matheson can be viewed below:
Read The Direct's review of LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight.
