As a youth, I wanted to be Batman. Primarily because I a) didn't have money, and b) wanted to ride in the Batmobile from the 1989 Batman film. There's something about Bruce Wayne's superhero alter ego (aside from the brooding over his dead parents all of the time) that's truly intriguing, and no doubt has spoken to someone like Jaden Smith.
Think about it: How do you top the work that your megastar parents Will Smith and Jada Pinkett-Smith have done for the world? Why, you become the guy who dons the mask and cape to "protect everyone." Jaden Smith is already the only person who could pull off a Lido feature and cop his mom a gold grill, all while taking pics with Aziz Ansari's pops at the Emmys. Dude's everywhere, is "fearless," and now we know why: because he's Batman.
Following the release of his incredible video for "Batman," here's a look at all of the times Jaden Smith has donned the Batman 'fit, for the culture.
May 24, 2014: I'm Batman...at Kim and Kanye's wedding
That's right, photos from one of the culture's most extravagant affairs featured a then-15-year-old Jaden Smith decked out in full all-white Batman mode. In a 2015 interview with GQ, Jaden broke down why he rocked the Batman gear, and it further established Jaden being the hero we need. "I wore the Batman suit to heighten my experience at the wedding," Jaden states, "which was fun, but also at the wedding I felt as though I needed to protect everyone there and needed to have the proper gear to do so."
Jaden Smith everyone, the kid who wears a white Batman suit to a wedding. pic.twitter.com/93TUROhmkE
May 17, 2015: I'm Batman...at the prom
About a year after protecting everyone at Kim and Kanye's wedding, there must have been some danger at his high school prom, because Jaden rocked a hybrid Batsuit that featured a jacket and tie as well as a cape, boots, and fingerless gloves.
According to a 2015 interview with GQ, Will Smith said that they got an "emergency call" from his date's father the night before prom, saying "'My daughter has just found out that Jaden is wearing a Batman suit to the prom.'" According to Will, rocking the tie with the Batsuit was Will and Jada's idea, as some sort of compromise. Kind of deters from the whole "secret identity" of things, but it truly just enhanced Jaden's truth of being the hero we need (and deserve).
June 14, 2017: I'm Batman...in my "Batman" video
After keeping the Dark (White) Knight in the shadows, Jaden emerged with his "Batman" video, which was definitely shot before he (Bat)sheared off his dreads. Interesting enough, this is when he truly encapsulates both sides of his life. He's chilling in his manor with a drink (which plays into the instrumental on the track) and marinating over stuff ala Bruce Wayne one moment, then turning up as the White (Dark) Knight in these streets, taking on Regular Suit Batman and Superman on some "DLC Injustice 2 character" shit.
Never have we seen a true hero tease the public with his protective ways quite like Jaden Smith has. He was one of the first faces seen in Shia LaBeouf's HEWILLNOTDIVIDEUS installation, and with Adam West's recent passing, the emergence of this video days later makes all kinds of sense. Instead of a Batsignal in the L.A. sky, we're getting a full-on superhero taking it to the streets, vowing to protect everyone and saving the day "every single way." Why? Because "we don't really got a choice."
