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The Ratty Poodle is a trained circus dog that performed various criminal acts for the Poodle Lady during Red Triangle gang heists.

History[]

She was one of the sideshow performers like the Penguin and the "World's Fattest Man". Although the Poodle Lady and her dog seemed relatively harmless, the dog has been used by the woman to commit heinous acts, such as sending it to deliver hand grenades to destroy storefronts.

The ratty poodle was able to perform a swift areal leap and catch the hi-tech Super-Batarang just before it struck her master, after it knocked out the Rocket Launcher thug and two other clowns. Batman seemed mildly shocked by this, as the pair ran away to procure the weapon while Batman defeated the Sword Swallower and the Thin Clown.

The poodle kept the Batarang clamped tightly in its mouth until Penguin used it to plant circumstantial fraudulent evidence. Later when Batman used his own resources to re-direct the Penguin Commandos from Gotham Plaza and back to Old Zoo, she fled with the Poodle Lady when she realized the Batskiboat was quickly approaching their Arctic World lair.

Appearances[]

Behind the Scenes[]

Tim Burton auditioned dozens of dogs for the circus poodle but went with Darla because she had stringiest shaggy fur he envisioned for the Ratty Poodle. When Darla arrived on set the owner had taken her to Poodle Parlour and appeared neatly trimmed and dolled up. Bob Ringwood cut up blonde curly wigs and created a zip-up jacket for the dog to wear.

Trivia[]

  • Darla the dog had previously appeared in Burton's directorial debut, Pee-Wee's Big Adventure as the Pink Poodle but most notably played Precious in Silence of the Lambs.
  • Although she played the role of a Poodle, Darla's actual breed was a Bichon Frise.
  • Darla passed away in 1992, less than a year after filming Batman Returns, her final film role.

Gallery[]

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