Talia al Ghul

Talia al Ghul
Talia as depicted on the exclusives reprint variant cover of Detective Comics #411. Art by Woo Chul Lee (April 2024).
Publication information
Publisher	DC Comics
First appearance	Detective Comics #411 (May 1971)
Created by	Dennis O'Neil (writer) Bob Brown (artist) Dick Giordano (concept)
In-story information
Species	Human
Team affiliations	Secret Society of Super Villains League of Assassins Leviathan
Notable aliases	Talia Head Leviathan Daughter of the Demon's Head
Abilities	Expert martial artist and hand-to-hand combatant Expert swordswoman and markswoman Access to the Lazarus Pit

Talia al Ghul (/ˈtɑːliə ˌæl ˈɡuːl/;^[1][2] Arabic: تالية الغول, Arabic pronunciation: [taːlijja al.ɣuːl]) is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with Batman. The character was created by writer Dennis O'Neil and artist Bob Brown, and first appeared in Detective Comics #411 (May 1971).^[3]

Talia is most commonly known as being the daughter of the supervillain Ra's al Ghul as well as the on-and-off lover of the superhero Batman and the mother of their son Damian Wayne (the fifth Robin). The circumstances of Damian's conception have varied over the years, with the original story behind his conception being the result of a brief marriage between Bruce and Talia in the Elseworlds story Birth of the Demon, the second explanation being a result of a sexual assault of Bruce by Talia as seen in Grant Morrison’s works.^[4] Over the years, she has alternately been depicted as an anti-heroine who is constantly torn between being an ally and an enemy of Batman due to her loyalty to both him and her environmentalist father, with whom she shares the same vision when it comes to saving the planet and nature, but not the means he uses to achieve that goal.

Talia has been featured in various media adaptations. The character was voiced by Helen Slater and Olivia Hussey in the DC Animated Universe, which became her first appearances in media other than comic books. The character was subsequently portrayed by Marion Cotillard in the 2012 film The Dark Knight Rises and by Lexa Doig in the Arrowverse television series Arrow.