Nightwing (DC Animated Film Universe)

Richard "Dick" Grayson was the first Robin, partner of Batman, from when he was a boy. In his adult years, Grayson took on a new costumed identity Nightwing.

Early life and time as Robin
When he was a boy, Dick worked at a circus. Following that, he was fostered by Bruce Wayne, who he helped fight crime as the vigilante Robin. Eventually, he moved on to his own solo activities as Nightwing, leaving behind his Robin outfit to be put on display in the Batcave.

Son of Batman
Nightwing stopped Damian Wayne from killing the defeated and severely wounded Ubu. After a prolonged battle Nightwing managed to subdue and tie up the boy, although he ended up with a number of sizeable sword cuts. Later, Nightwing piloted the Batwing to rescue Batman, Talia and Damian.

Nightwing and Robin
Dick and Damian were called upon by Batman to find and capture the Scarecrow since he had to help the Justice League. The two tracked Scarecrow down and defeated him in his warehouse.

Batman vs. Robin
While Batman was out on patrol Dick came over to keep an eye on Damian. The two sparred in the Batcave and argued over who was Bruce's real "son". Damian ended up defeating Dick in combat.

Later, while Dick was talking to his girlfriend "Kori", Damian sneaked out of the mansion. When Bruce returned from an almost fatal encounter with the Court of Owls Dick stitched him up.

Later when the Talon attacked the Wayne Manor and the Batcave, Nightwing and Batman fought them off however during the fight Dick was seriously injured and eventually subdued by Talon. After Talon was stopped and Damian left to find himself Dick chastised Bruce for letting him go alone but Bruce assured him Damian would come back when he was ready.

Batman: Bad Blood
Nightwing was en route to "the Tower" and visit Starfire after weeks of not seeing each other. He was delayed by the appearance of Blockbuster in a red light district. Blockbuster threw vehicles at Nightwing but missed. Nightwing made his way to Blockbuster and hit him in the chin with a knee and assaulted him with his staves. Starfire distracted Nightwing by saying she almost forgot what he feels like. He took a kick from Blockbuster and was propelled into a construction site. Nightwing threw out a throwing star at a crane and severed the wrecking ball. It landed right on top of Blockbuster. Nightwing was about to resume his trip to "the Tower" but Alfred Pennyworth sent him an emergency call. Nightwing begrudgingly cancelled on Starfire and drove to the Batcave instead. He eavesdropped on Pennyworth posing as Bruce Wayne at a Wayne Enterprises board meeting. Once the feed was cut, Nightwing teased Pennyworth to watch the "bloody hells" and give himself away. Pennyworth was not amused.

Nightwing asked how long Batman was gone. Pennyworth replied two weeks, one day, and 15 hours. Nightwing remarked it wouldn't be the first time. Pennyworth agreed but Batman should have contacted him already. He worried the surge in criminal activity would only increase in Batman's absence. Nightwing made the hard call and donned one of the older Batman suits. He drove to the docks and interrupted Black Mask's operation unloading a weapons shipment. More of Mask's men converged on the site but Robin suddenly appeared and jammed Mask's own weapon causing it to blow back in his face. Batman was not pleased. Modest as ever, Robin criticized Grayson's impression of Batman and insisted he needed his help. Batwoman continued following the Batmobile but Batman and Robin confronted her in an alley. Batwoman deduced he was really Nightwing then admitted she witnessed the real Batman's death. She showed them the ruins of the warehouse where she and Batman fought a gang of supervillains.

Grayson proposed they should all work together but Batwoman declined to join the "cult" and glided back to the city. On the drive back, Robin insinuated Grayson wanted to Batman to be dead so he could keep the suit on. Grayson braked and gave him an earful about how he wanted nothing to do with it. Pennyworth made contact and played Batman's file on Batwoman. But he and Grayson were surprised to learn she was Katherine Kane. The next night, he and Robin responded to Lucius Fox's security breach alert at Wayne Tech. They entered the sub-level 3 vault and battled Heretic's gang. However, Batman could not pursue with Robin electrocuted into submission and Fox bleeding out. Grayson later visited Fox in the hospital. Luke Fox, his son, demanded to join the war against Heretic but Grayson turned him down and said it wasn't his call. That night, as Batman he found Kane in a bar and sent her an anonymous text to meet him on the rooftop. He revealed his secret identity to Batwoman and admitted he had a childhood crush on her. Batwoman remarked she thought he was annoying.

Batwoman told Grayson about the night Batman saved her life and how she vowed she would never need someone to save her again. Grayson understood but believed she didn't have to be alone as a result. Pennyworth alerted Grayson of Robin's sudden disappearance. Batman and Batwoman followed Robin's tracker to the Sisters of Perpetual Grace convent outside the city. They were met by nuns armed with M-60s and katana blades. Somehow, Grayson convinced Batwoman to use rubber bullets. As the battle continued, Batwing came to their aid. Tusk informed Talia of three intruders. Talia ordered a retreat but left Bruce and Damian Wayne behind. Batman had Batwing blast the front doors in. He made his way through the compound and encountered Hellhound. Hellhound did a series of stances but debris rained down on him. He encountered Bruce and Damian Wayne and helped them outside. However, the convent began to collapse. Batman struggled to hold onto the grapnel line Damian and Bruce clung to but he soon fell as well. Batwing saved them and flew them back to stable ground.

Without so much as a thank you or acknowledgement of Batwing and Batwoman, Bruce Wayne ordered Robin and Nightwing back to Gotham. A week later, Wayne informed Damian, Pennyworth, and Grayson they would pursue Talia after he finished hosting the World Tech Summit. Grayson felt they shouldn't wait and instead call in Kane and Fox to help. The conversation became heated between Wayne and Grayson about including them and telling Kane their secret. Pennyworth commented he was gone and Grayson had to make a judgment call and thought it was the right one. Wayne conceded but wanted it be family only going forward. Grayson revealed Kane was working the the hard drive they confiscated from the convent. Wayne wanted her out after she was done and declared he called the shots. After Wayne left the cave, Pennyworth noted he went through an extraordinary ordeal. Grayson stated they all did, too. He started a work out and called Kane to inform her of Wayne's decision. He tried to apologize but Kane told there was nothing to be sorry about.

A short time later, Nightwing and Robin met with Batwoman on a rooftop. She told them about how her brainwashed father tried to kill her. Nightwing suspected Wayne told Talia about the hard drive and the secret Wayne Tech vault earlier. Batwing arrived with the data he extracted from the hard drive. Nightwing noticed a list contained names of vice-presidents, military officials, and corporate leaders and realized Talia planned to brainwash them all at the summit. They infiltrated the Watchtower Initiative above the city. Nightwing declared first priority was evacuating the attendees but Talia cut them off with her team. Nightwing was forced to battle a brainwashed Batman. Batman eventually broke Nightwing's left shoulder and soundly bested him. Talia tossed him a gun and ordered him to execute Nightwing. Robin appeared and deduced Talia was all about control. Talia ordered Batman to kill Robin first instead. Nightwing pleaded with Wayne not to kill because he never killed. Not to let her win or take his soul.

Talia retorted she cleansed his soul and took away his trauma. Nightwing declared Batman brought them all together because he understood their pain and lonliness better than anyone could. They needed a family. They needed him. Batman struggled with the gun. Nightwing continued and admitted he wasn't just a mask, he was a man and the best man he ever knew. Batman held the gun to himself and stammered he couldn't fight the programming. Nightwing implored him to fight it for the boy who lost his world in that alley. Talia drew her sword and was about to kill Nightwing herself but Batman shot it out of her hands then fell over. Nightwing and Robin tended to him as Batwoman decked Talia. Batwing arrived. Talia was surrounded. She pulled a grenade and declared she would have Wayne in death. It was just a ploy and Talia got away in her transport but to crash into the ocean when Onyx attacked her for putting the Heretic down. A short time later, back at Wayne Manor, Grayson thanked Pennyworth for lunch and was about to depart for the Tower. He noticed Pennyworth was observing Bruce and Damian Wayne having a heart-to-heart outside over Talia's death.

Grayson made a full recovery. Batwoman caught up with Nightwing on her motorcycle as they made their way to the Gotham City Police Department headquarters to meet up with Batman and Robin. Batwing soared over them. They all noticed a police chase down below involving the Penguin and joined in the pursuit.

Justice League vs. Teen Titans
Nightwing was tasked with bringing Robin to "The Tower". On their way they debated on the use of a team.

Later Grayson is seen flirting with Starfire over a video chat. Kori expressed her frustrations over Damian's poor social skills and peer relations. He then unintentionally gave her the idea to use fun to resolve the team's issues, evidently confused by her sudden excitement.

Powers and Abilities

 * Master Combatant: Dick was trained by Batman in melee, close quarter and unarmed combat. However, he usually has blunt weapons, such as his escirma sticks.
 * Peak Human Condtion: Due to rigorous training, he is much stronger, faster and more resilient than any normal human. He can overpower most combatants with ease and withstand great amounts of punishment that would be heavily weakening humans.
 * Master Acrobat: Dick has also demonstrated superb nimbleness and agility, being able to perform nearly superhuman feats of agility. This makes him skilled in acrobatics and gymnastics, as well as parkour and free-running, which he incorporates in fighting and moving across cityscapes.

Trivia

 * Dick Grayson first appeared in Detective Comics #38 created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger, and Jerry Robinson.
 * Dick isn't a member of the Teen Titans in this version despite being romantically involved with Starfire, although he was shown in the line up at the end, which indicates that he is still involved to a certain extent with the group.