Fans are freaking out in the best way after finding out that longtime 'Batman' voice actor is gay

Some fans of DC Comics' "Batman" were in for a pleasant and thrilling surprise last week when they learned that one of the most influential men to play the Dark Knight is, in fact, openly gay. Despite only ever showing his face on screen for the role once, actor Kevin Conroy—who is best known for voicing the Caped Crusader in a series of DC Animated series and films over the past 30 years—has defined the character for fans who grew up with his shows. Since joining the DC universe by providing his deep and resonant voice to Bruce Wayne for "Batman: The Animated Series," an Emmy Award-winning show that explored the character and his villains, the Julliard-trained actor is considered a core member of the DC universe by many fans.

Over the years, Conroy has made no secret of his sexuality, discussing his life as a gay man and survival of the 1980s AIDS crisis numerous times in interviews. Speaking to The New York Times in 2016 about his role in a Broadway production of "Eastern Standard," playing a TV producer secretly living with AIDS, he said: "I went to so many funerals that I felt such a sense of obligation to do it right." During a moment alone onstage, Conroy revealed, he would break down. "Every night I would just wail, feeling all the pain. I couldn't not feel it. It was a scream of, 'Look what's happening to us! Help!'"

Despite Conroy being one of only a handful of openly LGBTQ actors to play a superhero, a good chunk of "Batman" fans somehow seem to have missed his years of life as an out gay man. The realization came as a surprise to them this month when DC Comics announced the creative minds behind 2022's Pride Anthology, a series of stories penned by high-profile LGBTQ authors and drawn by famous queer artists centered around the label's LGBTQ characters.

According to Gizmodo, Conroy will be telling his own, "personal" story in the series. Speaking of the segment—titled "Finding Batman"—DC editor Andrea Shea revealed that the actor's first foray as a comics writer is a doozy. "2022 marks 30 years of Batman: The Animated Series so it only felt right to honor Kevin Conroy, THE voice of Batman for multiple generations. And we were FLOORED when he delivered a deeply moving personal story in collaboration with J. Bone and Aditya Bidikar," she said.

Many fans took to Twitter to share their surprise and delight at the news of Conroy's involvement in the anthology and their delayed realization of his sexuality. "Kevin Conroy writing a story for the DC Pride special is so goddamn wonderful. That man has been THE voice of Batman for as long as I've been alive and has been so foundational for so many folks who may not even know he's gay. It feels truly earned and special, I can't wait," tweeted @Blankzilla. "It's one of those things where queer people have ALWAYS been here and been involved in all the things you love and consider important and how easily that can be glossed over or not noticed. It's wonderful he's getting that spotlight to tell this story."

Here are some more of the best reactions from fans: