Movie memorabilia is expensive stuff. If we’re talking about movie cars or props, the bigger the film franchise they were used in, the more money they fetch on the collector market.
This could be your cheap ticket into the movie prop collector club, a very exclusive and expensive one. “Could” is the operative word, because there’s no way to verify if this is the real deal or just a decent replica.
One man from Barcelona, Spain, says he’s in possession of one of the seven amphibious electric vehicles used for The Penguin’s Duck Vehicle in Tim Burton's 1992 movie Batman Returns. He’s willing to part with it for $16,000 (or best offer) and, for this price, he’s even throwing in worldwide shipping (story via The Drive).
The seller has posted the ad to the Movie Props Facebook group, which offers collectors a platform to sell and buy real movie props and memorabilia. The problem with this Duck, which the seller erroneously dubs “Batduck,” is that he can’t verify whether it’s legit.
He says he bought it from a company in Spain that has “movie vehicles” and they assured him it was one of the seven used during the Batman Returns production. He also says he can only offer their word as certification for the vehicle’s origin, and no way to track the item’s provenance.
The few photos included show a Duck vehicle that resembles the one The Penguin used for transportation in Gotham’s sewers, albeit in a far worse condition given all these years. It’s an electric vehicle that can move forward and in reverse, notes the seller, but he doesn’t say whether it’s still working. Or, you know, if it can still float like it did in the movie.
Not to be a party-pooper, but a word of caution as regards movie items whose originality can’t be attested: you don’t want to pay a chunk of money for a replica and not even know about it. Several commenters point out that this particular Duck vehicle looks exactly like the Ducks used at Six Flags theme parks for a now-gone Batman ride, so it’s likely it’s not the real deal.
What is certain at this point is that one of the Ducks used in the movie as The Penguin’s environmentally-friendly ride is at the Kruse museum in Auburn, Indiana, together with the Batmobile and the Batskiboat also featured in the film. But you can’t buy it.
Elena has been writing for a living since 2006 and, as a journalist, she has put her double major in English and Spanish to good use. She covers automotive and mobility topics like cars and bicycles, and she always knows the shows worth watching on Netflix and friends. Full profile
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