In the 1989 Batman film, Batman gives the signal to the Gotham police force, enabling them to call him when the city was in danger. In 2005's Batman Begins, then-lieutenant James Gordon installs the Bat signal on the roof of the police department himself. The film suggests Gordon was inspired to create the signal after Batman left mobster Carmine Falcone chained across a spotlight, his silhouette vaguely resembling a bat.