The World’s Finest presents the latest in a series of studio-conducted interviews, provided by Warner Home Video, for the Batman: Under the Red Hood direct-to-video animated feature. Continue reading below for the latest installment featuring executive producer Bruce Timm.

Whos under the Red Hood? Bruce Timm knows, but hes not telling. However, he answers a bevy of other questions in an interesting Q&A focused on the upcoming release of Batman: Under the Red Hood, the latest entry in the ongoing series of DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movies.

Batman: Under the Red Hood is just the latest finished product to come from Timms canon of super hero vehicles at Warner Bros. Animation. A veritable legend among the creative forces in animation today, Timm has spearheaded the elevation of DC Comics characters to new heights of animated popularity and introduced generations of new fans to the characters via landmark television series and made-for-DVD films. The latter task includes the creation of the current series of DC Universe Animated Original Movies, which now number eight in total and each has been greeted with critical acclaim and nifty sales. Batman: Under the Red Hood will no doubt send more fans to the comic book stores clamoring for caped entertainment.

From the producing triumvirate of Warner Premiere, DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation, Batman: Under the Red Hood will be distributed by Warner Home Video as a Special Edition version on Blu-Ray and 2-disc DVD, as well as being available on single disc DVD, On Demand and for Download.

Timm paused long enough in his unthinkably busy schedule for a few cigarettes and a battery of questions, responding in true Timm form whether it be discussing the casting and art direction, revealing his across-the-board love for all versions of Batman, or setting the record straight on quotes attributed to him from a certain widely reported interview-that-never-was. This is vintage Bruce Timm read what the man has to say

QUESTION: What made Brandon Vietti the right director for Batman: Under the Red Hood?

BRUCE TIMM: Brandon is one of our up-and-coming director/producer types who has been with (Warner Bros. Animation) for a while. Ive known him for years he actually worked for me back on the Superman/Batman series and Ive watched him work his way up from being a top storyboard guy to a director. His work on the first third of Superman Doomsday was very powerful. When we were looking around for a director for this film, Brandon was very anxious to do something completely on his own, and I knew he was ready.

The thing about Brandon is that, besides just being talented, hes super, super thorough. Hes very detail oriented. So it was a relief to me to have someone like Brandon in charge, because I could pretty much leave it up to him to run the show and I knew he wasnt going to make any missteps. The end result is a very good film across the board in terms of action, emotion and design.

QUESTION: How did Judd Winick convince you that his comic series/graphic novel would translate well to an animated film?

BRUCE TIMM: When we first heard that Judd wanted to pitch Red Hood as an adaptation for our DC Universe film line, Alan Burnett and I quickly got copies of the book and read through it. My first impression was that it was an entertaining comic, but it was quite a long mini-series and it had all these tangents of supporting characters who came and went through the course of the story. Quite frankly, it was confusing to me and I kept thinking to myself that I didnt see how a lot of those things would work. The big thing about the story is that its a sequel to a big event in the history of DC comics the death of Robin that happened back in the 1980s and I didnt see how we could set that up, because it all hinges on being a sequel to that story. Furthermore, the way the pitch was arranged, we were in a room in Burbank and Judd was in San Francisco and had to pitch over the speakerphone. But amazingly, every single problem I thought wed have trouble making into a movie, Judd had fixed in the pitch. Judd had already clearly put a lot of thought into the entire film how to stay focused on the main story, how to clean up the death of Robin thing, and how to eliminate all the extra baggage. He pitched for about 45 minutes and when he was done, Alan and I looked at each other and said, Yeah, thats a movie. Lets do it. And away we meant.

QUESTION: Batman: Gotham Knight was a collection of short stories loosely tied together and produced in anime. What made Batman: Under the Red Hood the right story to be the first true Batman movie in the DC Universe animated franchise?

BRUCE TIMM: Seeing that this was going to be our first full-length Batman movie in the DC Universe line, we thought we really needed to have a strong story that wasnt just another adventure story or a caper that Batman foils. We wanted it to be something that truly needed to be told in a PG-13 venue that had a fair amount of, for lack of a better term, adult content that you couldnt normally do on television. And this story is loaded with it. Its also a personal story to Batman it does have an adventure plot and a crime plot, but the emotional arc of the story is rooted in Batmans messed up history with family relations. And especially in our animated universe, Batman always had a kind of dysfunctional family dynamic going on. Hes famously an orphan, hes got Alfred as his surrogate mother/father, hes always bringing in surrogate sons to mentor, and it always kind of goes badly. And this is, once again, one of the big expressions of that. So it makes for compelling drama as well as an exciting adventure.

QUESTION: A few casting questions. Why Bruce Greenwood as Batman?

BRUCE TIMM: Its always a challenge to cast Batman because we invariably have to ask ourselves, Who can we find out there who can hold their own against the legend of Kevin Conroy? Ive been following the career of Bruce Greenwood for a long time Ive seen him in a zillion movies and TV shows, and hes always struck me as an actor who has this excellent, interesting voice and impeccable acting chops. And around the same time we were casting this film, I saw the trailer for the J.J. Abrams Star Trek and there was Bruce Greenwood. So we tracked him down, he was agreeable, a great guy to work with, and he totally knocked it out of the park.

QUESTION: John DiMaggio has played many comical villains. How did you know hed be best as a villain who is also comical?

BRUCE TIMM: The Joker is a very iconic part memorably voiced by Mark Hamill, and played in films by Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger. Those are really big shoes to fill. John is a guy weve worked with for years playing tons of different kinds of parts, and every time we use him I think, God, weve got to give this guy a bigger part. He shouldnt just be Thug #2 or the monster that Wonder Woman fights. We needed to give him a part that he could sink his teeth into. This Joker came up and it really required somebody who has comedic chops but also is a really good actor, and DiMaggio has got that in spades. He was definitely the right guy for the part. He came in and did something that didnt sound anything like Mark Hamill or Jack Nicholson or Heath Ledger or Cesar Romero, and yet he sounds exactly like the Joker. Hes funny, and hes scary as hell, and thats just what you want.

QUESTION: What did Jensen Ackles bring to the table as Red Hood?

BRUCE TIMM: Red Hood is such a pivotal role in that he needed to be somebody who was forceful, threatening, weirdly sympathetic, and also had to be of a certain age. Not too young, not too old, just right. Andrea and I both knew of Jensens work, and he was one of those guys we had in our Gotta work with that guy some day file. And he fit the bill perfectly. Hes got an intensity in the booth that really matched the material.

QUESTION: Were there any surprises along the way?

BRUCE TIMM: One of the things I like the most about this movie is that, in the best possible ways, it kind of reminds me of a weird mesh of the Batman Beyond movie, Return of the Joker, and our first Batman: The Animated Series feature film, Batman: Mask of the Phantasm. It has a lot of the same kinds of themes, it has the same level of serious drama in it, and the same level of really good character development. I think its actually fully the equal of those two movies. Its dynamite.

Another interesting takeaway I got from this movie is that Brandon and I agreed that we really wanted to work to give this movie a unique visual feel. We deliberately tried to not make it look like Batman: The Animated Series. We tried a number of things in the art direction to stay away from that. But no matter what we did, it still kind of looks like Batman: The Animated Series. Its weird. So when you watch the movie, there will be about four or five minutes in a row where youll forget about the different cast and slightly different character designs and it actually kind of feels like the series. On another level, there is a certain influence from the Christopher Nolan movies. Its kind of in the tone of the film and the way Batman himself is treated and the feel of Gotham City. Its not quite as realistic our Gotham City is a little more stylized than the Gotham of the Nolan movies but there is similarity in tone, which makes for a very interesting Batman salad.

QUESTION: Judd Winick said his first introduction to Batman was the Adam West TV series, but that he knew even as a kid that it wasnt the Batman he wanted to see. Youve said that was your same entry point to the character did you ever have the same sense of Batmans positioning?

BRUCE TIMM: Yes, my first exposure to Batman as a character was Batman the TV series. But honestly, I didnt know it was supposed to be a parody or campy. I thought it was the coolest thing Id ever seen. Of course, I was 5 at the time. But all in one fell swoop, I became an instant super hero fan. Later on, as I got older and started reading more comics and getting into the super hero scene, I realized that the Batman show was kind of a comedy. I was reading Neal Adams comics and thinking, Batman is kind of cooler than that show hes kind of scary and mysterious. So my perception of Batman changed over time, and then I went through the periods with Frank Miller and the Tim Burton movies. So now Ive got these warring Batmans in my head. I still love the Adam West/Batman show. I still love the Neal Adams take on Batman comics. I still love The Dark Knight. All of these things totally contradict each other, and yet its fine to me. Ive said it over and over again Batman as a character is such a strong concept, hes the kind of character that you can take him in any number of ways and it still feels right. Batman: The Animated Series is a really good version of Batman. Batman: The Brave and the Bold thats a really good version of Batman. They have equal value.

QUESTION: Theres been a lot of internet banter regarding the discontinuation of the DCU series based on quotes attributed to an interview in Calgary with you. True or false?

BRUCE TIMM: Kinda false. First of all, it wasn’t an actual one-on-one interview — quotes were taken out of context from longer answers I gave on a panel at the Expo. Bottom line: the DCU films are definitely continuing. We’ve got projects lined up for the next two years at the very least lots of films in different stages of development and production. I know there are a lot of rumors circulating about future films. Some are true, some are not. I’ll tell you this much anyone at our DCU/Batman: Under the Red Hood panel at Comic-Con will walk away with a very clear picture of the direction we’re taking the DCU animated movies in the coming year.

Suggested captions for attached images:

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Bruce Timm serves as Executive Producer for Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next DC Universe animated original movie. The film will be distributed July 27, 2010 by Warner Home Video. (Photo courtesy of Gary Miereanu)

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Batman secures two criminals before taking on a much larger, brutal force in Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next DC Universe animated original movie. The film will be distributed July 27, 2010 by Warner Home Video.

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Robin makes a grand entrance in Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next DC Universe animated original movie. The film will be distributed July 27, 2010 by Warner Home Video.

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Part vigilante and part crime lord, Red Hood isn’t afraid to spill some blood to achieve his objectives in Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next DC Universe animated original movie. The film will be distributed July 27, 2010 by Warner Home Video.

For more information, images and updates, please visit the films official website at www.BatmanRedHood.com.

Click here to view the trailer for the upcoming Batman: Under the Red Hood direct-to-video animated feature.

A co-production of Warner Premiere, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation, the direct-to-video Batman: Under the Red Hood animated feature debuts July 27th, 2010 on DVD and Blu-ray disc from Warner Home Video. Stay tuned for further updates here soon at The Worlds Finest.

Discuss this in The DC Animation Forum!

The World’s Finest presents the latest in a series of studio-conducted interviews, provided by Warner Home Video, for the Batman: Under the Red Hood direct-to-video animated feature. Continue reading below for the latest installment featuring writer Judd Winick.

Judd Winick has returned to Gotham City with a vengeance. The award-winning cartoonist has successfully transitioned one of his benchmark storylines from comic book pages to animated film with the upcoming release of Batman: Under the Red Hood, the latest entry in the popular series of DC Universe Animated Original Movies.

Born and raised on Long Island, New York, the University of Michigan graduate gained national fame as a cast member of MTVs The Real World, San Francisco in 1994. In the wake of the death of his Real World roommate and friend, AIDS activist Pedro Zamora, Winick embarked on a national AIDS education lecture tour. Later, the lecture and his friendship with Zamora was documented in his award-winning graphic novel Pedro And Me.

Winick next created his original comic book series, Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius, and then began a long running stint as one of the top writers on mainstream super hero comics. Winick has scripted such titles as Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, Trials Shazam, Green Arrow and Outsiders (for DC Comics), Exiles (for Marvel) and Star Wars (for Dark Horse). He also was the creator and executive producer of Cartoon Networks animated series The Life and Times of Juniper Lee.

He is currently developing live action television and animation, writing the new bi-weekly comic title for DC Comics Justice League: Generation Lost, as well as the monthly Power Girl.

In 2005, Winick presented his Red Hood storyline in the Batman comics and it was met with tremendous sales alongside powerful waves of controversy. He has evolved that story into the script for the all-new DC Universe film, Batman: Under the Red Hood. In celebration of the films July 27 street date, DC Comics will distribute a six-issue mini-series, Red Hood: The Lost Days. Written by Winick and drawn by Pablo Raimondi, the mini-series offers greater insight into the back story of the title character.

From the producing triumvirate of Warner Premiere, DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation, Batman: Under the Red Hood will be distributed by Warner Home Video as a Special Edition version on Blu-Ray and 2-disc DVD, as well as being available on single disc DVD, On Demand and for Download.

Winick is thrilled with the way his words have transitioned from comic/graphic novel to screenplay to animated film in the form of Batman: Under the Red Hood, and is only too happy to talk about the end result. Here are some of his thoughts

QUESTION: What was the greatest challenge in taking your graphic novel to script format?

JUDD WINICK: I had to take two years of story and boil it down to 75 minutes of film, and thats a challenge and liberating at the same time. It forces one to cut out all the fat and get to the heart of it. Its about making a movie. And for those who know anything about movies, its about putting one foot in front of the other, building from one scene to the next to the next and so on. There are no cul-de-sacs or crossovers its all about getting the story to its essence.

QUESTION: Were you disappointed with what you needed to cut out?

JUDD WINICK: Actually, I was thrilled about what went in. Im really, really happy that the emotional core of the story is still there. We dont really get to tell stories like this in animation. The opera of it all is usually reserved for live action. This story is about characters actually emoting and dealing with horrible situations. Animation usually gets just the action and the visualization, and not the characters actually feeling anything. So it was nice we got to do that.

QUESTION: Can you describe the gratification of watching your words come to animated life?

JUDD WINICK: Its great. And I dont mean to take anything away from writing for comics, as this is just a different form of story telling. One of the fun parts of writing for film is that it allows you the freedom for your characters to just shut up and fight. We cant do that in comics there always has to be some banter or internal monologue. More importantly, its gratifying to see the words and action come to life in all the ways film affords through incredibly talented actors giving the words all that emotional impact; and to see the characters actually fight and run and yell and shout and cry. They become living, breathing beings. Thats a very exhilarating experience for a writer.

QUESTION: Do the voices of Bruce Greenwood, Jensen Ackles, Neil Patrick Harris and John DiMaggio match what you had in your head while writing the dialogue?

JUDD WINICK: Ive been writing these characters for years, and its remarkable the job those actors did. Greenwood is about as Batman as you can get which is exactly what you want. You dont want to be surprised as soon as he speaks, you want to say to yourself, Thats Batman. Nightwing is exactly as Ive had him in my head Neil Patrick Harris couldnt possibly do it better. Id like to do an entire feature with Bruce Greenwood as Batman and Neil Patrick Harris as Nightwing.

Red Hood is funny for me because I thought Id written this character in this incarnation more than anyone else, but I had no clue what hed really sound like. And yet, when Jensen speaks, thats the right tone and timbre. As far as Joker, that is one of the truly great characters that I think needs to be left up to interpretation. Theres only been a handful of people who have created Joker Mark Hamill set the standard for animation, then youve got Jack (Nicholson) and Heath Ledger. But John (DiMaggio) has such versatility, he could go anywhere with it, and he made it totally his own. He really gives a very big and gruff and masculine performance, so deep and throaty and bass. Hes wonderfully scary and really gets the job done.

Wade Williams as Black Mask absolutely cracks me up. Hes like a lion. Honestly, what came out in the animation came directly out of his performance. Wade made him into a caged animal who might go off at any second. Hes constantly roaring, which is an entirely different take than I anticipated and thats awesome. Thats an actor making decisions and making it his own and really hitting the mark.

QUESTION: Executive Producer Bruce Timm says your pitch was unorthodox in that it was over the phone and yet was absolutely perfect and completely sold him. Howd you pull that off?

JUDD WINICK: Id given a rougher pitch to Gregory Noveck (DC Comicss Senior Vice President of Creative Affairs) and he loved it, but we had to pitch it to the gang. The schedule worked out that I had to be in San Francisco, and they had to be in Burbank. Thats not the ideal way to pitch, especially for me I like to jump around a lot, shout a lot, wave my hands and be theatrical. Thats especially true for this pitch because its a very emotional script. I kind of sold the idea in the first five minutes of the pitch, which was essentially describing the first five minutes of the movie.

I thought this would be a cool animated feature, but to really tell this story, we had to find a way to show Robin dying. We had to get the history in quickly to start the movie with that emotional smack. So Im on my head set, going through this scene, talking about Batman barreling down the street of Sarajevo, the Joker beating Robin to death,. Im banging my hands on the desk, yelling as loud as I can, and by the time I said Fade to black, cue to opening credits, it was just dead quiet on the other end of the line. I said, Is everybody still there? And they said, Yeah, that was awesome. Done. Sold.

QUESTION: How did you first enter the Batcave as a fan?

JUDD WINICK: Like many people of my age, Im sure I was reading the comics but I remember watching the TV series more and not really liking it. It didnt quite feel right. I know I enjoyed it more like watching Super Friends, but I really gravitated toward the comics more than anything. The series wasnt dark enough. It didnt have the edge I wanted in my Batman. Ultimately, the TV show gave me a sense of what I didnt want Batman to be, even back then.

QUESTION: For The Real World fans out there do you have any inclination to do another reality show?

JUDD WINICK: I would say NEVER. Laughs. Doing reality was like elective surgery. I got the nose job, it worked out just fine. I dont need a touch up, and I dont need another one. When they started to do the follow-ups, we just kept saying No until they stopped asking us. We have jobs and responsibilities and really dont need the money or the humiliation. And most importantly, we had a fairly extraordinary and terrible experience during the show and still came out positively. We are very lucky in that way, and I would not assume to tempt fate and do anything like it again.

QUESTION: Do you feel Batman: Under the Red Hood fits into Batmans current live-action film tone?

JUDD WINICK: Id say Christopher Nolans The Dark Knight was sort of the catalyst. After seeing that film, it got my juices going thinking that we could do something like that with a Red Hood arc. At the time, I didnt even know what Warner Premiere was working on. It all started with a quick email to Gregory (Noveck) asking if they were looking for any more Batman features. Comics and film present very specific camps for the characters and the stories. Animation should be its own genre that straddles between the two that can give comic fans the product their hoping to see, and provide a new vision for the fans who only know these characters in the most mainstream way.

QUESTION: Do you like presenting your stories in animated form?

JUDD WINICK: I really do. Im a cartoonist. I dont draw for money, and mostly what I do is the writing. But thats how I view myself more than anything else as a cartoonist. I grew up on animation, and I always loved knowing that the cartoons on the page could actually come to life. I worshipped at the alter of Chuck Jones, and realized at a very young age that one guy did all the things I love best. I love it as a medium and I love how its evolved. Animation features have exploded there is more high-end animation being produced now than ever before, and I think thats great.

Suggested captions for attached images:

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Judd Winick has adapted his own comic book series into the screenplay for Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next DC Universe animated original movie. The film will be distributed July 27, 2010 by Warner Home Video.

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Batman holds a lifeless Robin in one of the emotionally charged opening scenes of Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next DC Universe animated original movie. The film will be distributed July 27, 2010 by Warner Home Video.

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The Joker pushes the boundaries of violence and cruelty in Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next DC Universe animated original movie. The film will be distributed July 27, 2010 by Warner Home Video.

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Part vigilante and part crime lord, Red Hood stays one step ahead of his foes in Batman: Under the Red Hood, the next DC Universe animated original movie. The film will be distributed July 27, 2010 by Warner Home Video.

For more information, images and updates, please visit the films official website at www.BatmanRedHood.com.

Click here to view the trailer for the upcoming Batman: Under the Red Hood direct-to-video animated feature.

A co-production of Warner Premiere, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation, the direct-to-video Batman: Under the Red Hood animated feature debuts July 27th, 2010 on DVD and Blu-ray disc from Warner Home Video. Stay tuned for further updates here soon at The Worlds Finest.

Discuss this in The DC Animation Forum!

Included in every DC Comics publication, the “DC Nation” column focused this week on the upcoming Batman: Under the Red Hood direct-to-video animated feature. The “DC Nation” column focuses on upcoming events coming from DC Comics and DC Entertainment, and is included in every DC Comics publication with a new focus every week. Click on the thumbnail below for a look at the “DC Nation” coverage of Batman: Under the Red Hood.

A co-production of Warner Premiere, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation, the direct-to-video Batman: Under the Red Hood animated feature debuts July 27th, 2010 on DVD and Blu-ray disc from Warner Home Video. Stay tuned for further updates here soon at The Worlds Finest.

Discuss this in The DC Animation Forum!