Adam West Discusses Current ‘Dark Knight’ Franchise

While I’m not a big fan of the way this conversation was framed, it’s worth noting that the crew at ComicBookMovie.com recently chatted with actor Adam West, the Batman of the campy 1960s television series, about the current state of the character’s TV and movie franchise.

Sure, it’s no surprise to anyone that West views Batman Begins and its upcoming sequel, The Dark Knight, as a far darker, grittier take on the character he portrayed in the groovy TV series and subsequent (even more campy) film, Batman: The Movie, but his take on the original series provides some interesting food for thought.

"It was silly and funny. With the villains, especially, it was almost Shakespearian because of the bizarre costuming and makeup," he recalls. "In those days we didn’t rely on special effects as much so everyone was challenged to use their imaginations."

West also provides an update of sorts as to the state of the TV series availability on DVD:

"They only thing I’ve heard is that for some time they’ve been trying to cut a deal as far as ownership and return — basically who gets what slice of the pie. When that is worked out, then I guess you’ll be able to get it."

The full chat (which is actually pretty sparse and framed sort of, well… rudely) is available over at ComicBookMovie.com.