A new Batman movie is something that is always met with hype. While there have been some real stinkers to accompany the wins, Batman's never-ending popularity comes with a lot of hype whenever he appears in anything. Given his longevity on the screen, several actors have slipped on the bat suit.
Some of the actors have done better jobs in the role than others. That being said, no matter how their tenures as The Caped Crusader turned out, all of these actors have had some unusual facts surrounding them. Let's take a look at a few.
West's Long Day
For audiences of an older generation, Adam West was their Batman. Regardless of your opinion of Batman 1966, Adam West was a national treasure and he is missed. With that mind, his first day on set may have had him thinking twice about the role.
West revealed in a behind the scenes feature for the movie spin-off of the series that when he turned up on the set of the first episode "Hi Diddle Riddle," out of nowhere, The Riddler's car exploded. The fact that West didn't chicken out of the role, even when shrapnel rocketed past his head, says a lot about West's character.
Keaton's Bat-Trance
Michael Keaton is the Batman that transcended generations. Despite the fact that his time as Batman ended 28 years ago, that is, until The Flash comes out, generations that were around before and after identify Keaton as Batman, though there was an unusual addition to the Batman mythos that the 1989 film had lined up that wound up being cut.
In an interview with Comics Alliance, Keaton revealed that he approached Batman director Tim Burton about Bruce Wayne potentially going into a trance to switch from Bruce Wayne to his Batman persona. Apparently, the scene was filmed, but thankfully someone saw sense, and it was left on the cutting room floor.
Conroy's Relief Story
Kevin Conroy is the voice everyone hears in their head when they read Batman's dialogue, but this story shows that Conroy is just as cool as The Dark Knight himself. In an interview with CBR, Conroy revealed that he volunteered to cook for the relief workers after 9/11.
One night, someone recognized his voice from his work in Batman: The Animated Series, and he told people that Batman was cooking their dinner. When they naturally asked for proof, Conroy bellowed out "I am vengeance! I am the night! I am BATMAN!"
Kilmer's Childish Behavior
Batman Forever, for many, is the start of the downfall that led to Christopher Nolan having to step in to save Batman's cinematic legacy. Val Kilmer, who played Batman in the film, was fine in the role, but stories about his attitude hint that he thought that he was the best Batman ever.
Based on director Joel Schumacher's recollections as part of a 1996 Entertainment Weekly article, Kilmer behaved like a spoiled child on set and engaged in fights with many of the crew members. The late Schumacher even confronted Kilmer about this, which led to Kilmer refusing to speak to the director for two weeks.
Clooney's Various Apologies
It's a universal belief that Batman & Robin is an utter turkey of a movie and that belief is held by the film's crew, as well. Many of the cast and crew, including director Joel Schumacher, have made it clear how much they regret working on the movie, but none hated it more than Batman actor George Clooney.
Clooney's career was just kicking off when Batman & Robin came out and if it wasn't for films such as Ocean's Eleven, his career would have died. Clooney has apologized to Batman fans for Batman & Robin and has taken the mickey out of it in several junkets.
Bale's Interview Accent
Christian Bale is an eccentric character. Whether it be his weight shifting for various projects or that time he yelled at a crewmember for adjusting the stage lights while he was acting, Bale seems to take things far more seriously on set than most people do.
During the promotion of Batman Begins, Bale did interviews and behind the scenes bonus features in an American accent, despite having a natural British accent. He claimed he didn't want to confuse fans who would see the movie and hear his American accent, but it is an odd choice nonetheless.
Hammer's Mind Games
Though Justice League Mortal never ended up seeing the light of day, fans have gathered enough information about it to get an idea of what it would have been like. According to Batman actor Armie Hammer in an interview with aintitcool.com, the cast assembled for the film were instructed by director George Miller to perform exercises to get into character.
Miller left Hammer out of the loop on a lot of things, which was intended to seed a sense of paranoia into the young actor. Batman's comic-accurate paranoia is something that hasn't really been capitalized on in live-action outside of the middling Batman V. Superman: Dawn Of Justice, so this film would have broken new ground.
Baldwin's Second Chance
Justice League: Crisis On Two Earths isn't the most well-remembered DC animated movie, but it does feature an interesting casting choice for The Caped Crusader. William Baldwin did the voice of Batman in the film, but this wasn't his first dalliance with The Dark Knight.
According to the man himself in an interview with Comic Vine, William Baldwin was high on Joel Schumacher's list to play Batman in Batman Forever before Val Kilmer was cast. He also stated that the other names considered were Daniel Day-Lewis and Ralph Fiennes.
Affleck's First Pair Of Tights
Though Ben Affleck's turn as Batman was as flawed as it was brief, many think he did a pretty good job in the role. Whether you agree or not, many seem to have forgotten Affleck's first turn as a superhero, playing The Man Without Fear in the 2003 film Daredevil.
Daredevil might not be the worst superhero movie, but it certainly didn't set the world on fire back in 2003. Much like George Clooney, Ben Affleck deeply regrets making the film, and it's safe to say that it left him with something to prove when he put on the cape and cowl of The World's Greatest Detective.
Pattinson's Lighthouse Inspiration
Though his casting was initially met with skepticism, many fans are excited to see what Robert Pattinson will bring to the role of Batman when The Batman releases in November 2021. Very little information has come out about his performance, but Pattinson has admitted an odd detail about his bat-voice.
Pattinson stated in an interview with Access Hollywood, that he wants to go with a more "pirate-y" voice for Batman, taking inspiration from his castmate from The Lighthouse, Willem Dafoe. Even though this could just be Pattinson pulling DC fans' legs, but it does sound like an interesting path to go down.