Of all the superheroes, Batman probably has the best cast of supervillains to do battle with. Their true genius is in their meaningfulness; almost every Batman antagonist represents an aspect of the Bat himself. One villain represents Bruce Wayne's complex relationship with fear, and that villain is Dr. Jonathan Crane, AKA Scarecrow.

Scarecrow was created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger in 1941, though the character only made a couple of appearances before his reappearance in 1967. In the decades that followed, the character would be cemented; a former professor of psychology who became obsessed with human responses to fear and began a life of crime primarily to torment the innocent and record the results. He is best known for his fear toxin, a hazy green gas that creates paranoia and hallucinations in its victims, which he uses for his grim experiments. Scarecrow has officially appeared in live-action only 3 times, and the first was over sixty years after his comic book debut.

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The Dark Knight Trilogy

Scarecrow as depicted in Batman Begins

Dr. Crane's first on-screen appearance is likely still his most iconic. Scarecrow was the secondary antagonist of Christopher Nolan's 2005 classic Batman Begins. Though the lion's share of his screentime comes in his first film, Dr. Crane is actually the only villain to appear in all three films of Nolan's trilogy. The first on-screen Scarecrow was portrayed by the outstanding Cillian Murphy, who conveys a brilliant balance with the character. Equal parts erudite and manic, Murphy's Jonathan Crane is always offputting, even when he's hilarious. This is perhaps the least visually imposing version of the character, eschewing the full costume in favor of a simple burlap mask. Dr. Crane is not a physical threat in most cases, he's a devious and resourceful schemer, joining forces with more traditional criminals to facilitate his personal obsessions.

In Batman Begins, Dr. Jonathan Crane is working as a psychopharmacologist at the iconic Arkham Asylum who performs unethical experiments on patients with his fear toxin. Dr. Crane is in league with mob boss Carmine Falcone, and their connection becomes suspect after a trade of favors. The cooperation breaks down after Falcone winds up behind bars and, after threatening Dr. Crane, a quick puff of fear toxin leaves him mumbling "Scarecrow" for the rest of his screentime. Crane teams with Ra's al Ghul to expose all of Gotham to the gas, but Batman gives the doctor a brief exposure to his own medicine, driving him mad. Crane is then imprisoned but swiftly escapes, only to be recaptured once more in the opening of The Dark Knight. Crane escapes again after Bane frees Blackgate's incarcerated in The Dark Knight Rises, allowing Crane to run the new court system in the anarchic city. The hilarious show trial scene is, tragically, the last fans saw of Murphy's take on Scarecrow.

Gotham

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Scarecrow's next appearance came two years later in the long-running series Gotham. Crane is introduced in the first season, as a teenager who is subjected to a chemical meant to render him immune from fear. Instead, the chemical functions identically to his trademark fear toxin, leading to a nervous breakdown, a long stay at Arkham Asylum, and a violent escape as he takes on the classic Scarecrow role. This Scarecrow focuses much more on the mask and much less on Crane, as he joins the series enormous cadre of villains. He is portrayed by Charlie Tahan in his first appearances, then by David W. Thompson to the end of the series.

Gotham's take on Scarecrow sees a broken boy rebel after years of being institutionalized, becoming a nightmarish villain focused on chemical warfare. His primary role in the narrative is tactical application of his toxin, gassing Jim Gordon multiple times and occasionally developing new formulations. Scarecrow is a part of Jerome Valeska's Legion of Horribles. On that team, he develops a laughing gas comparable to Joker's Joker Venom and engages in a grand plan to fumigate the city with it. He later joins in on a plan to drive young Bruce Wayne insane with his toxin, but is defeated by Selina Kyle. In season 5, after the city is fully driven to madness, Scarecrow is a powerful gang leader, invading a science lab to perform his experiments at will. Gordon runs Scarecrow out of his new lab, and the character is never seen again. His fate is unknown, though he does pop up as a guest in Gordon's imaginary funeral, a hallucination of his comatose mind.

Titans

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The final on-screen Scarecrow appeared in season 3 of the hit live-action series Titans. Dr. Crane actually plays a significant role in the latest season, he is the primary controlling force of recurring series villain Jason Todd. This Dr. Crane is portrayed by Vincent Kartheiser, as a former Arkham inmate who works as a criminal profiler for the GCPD. Crane is responsible for basically every aspect of Red Hood; Crane manipulated Todd into his murder at the hands of The Joker, resurrected him in the Lazarus Pit, then began chemically controlling him to spark fear throughout the city. The apex of his plan sees him introduce Todd to the city as a hero, forcing the Titans into hiding as public opinion turns against them. Crane retreats into Wayne Manor, suffers a breakdown, and becomes even more violent, setting the stage for Scarecrow to be an even greater supervillain next season.

Scarecrow is the rare character that becomes a centerpiece of any story he's slid into, often too much fun to let slip away for long. He is set to appear in the upcoming season 4 of Titans, but fans will have to wait and see where else this iconic villain could appear.

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