Christian Bale, who played Batman in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy, explains why he hasn't seen Robert Pattinson's The Batman yet. One of the DC Comics heroes brought to life the most on-screen is Batman, whether in live-action or animation. In 2022, Warner Bros. rebooted the Batman movie franchise with director Matt Reeves re-imagining the Dark Knight for the big screen. With the titular character played by Pattinson, The Batman follows a younger Bruce Wayne, who is in his second year as the protector of Gotham City.
Not only was The Batman a critical success, but the reboot was a commercial hit, grossing $770.3 million at the worldwide box office. With The Batman being a hit with critics and fans, Warner Bros. officially greenlit The Batman 2, with Reeves and Pattinson both confirmed to return. Prior to Pattinson portraying the Caped Crusader, one of the many actors to have played Batman was Bale, who starred in Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy. Similar to The Batman, Bale's take on Bruce was set in a grounded, realistic world, where there were no other superheroes except for the Caped Crusader.
Bale, who finished his time as Batman back in 2012 with The Dark Knight Rises, is about to rejoin the superhero genre with his role in Thor: Love and Thunder. At a recent event for the upcoming Marvel movie, Bale was asked by Variety, whether he had seen The Batman at this point. Bale confirmed that he has yet to see Pattinson's take on Batman, but the movie is definitely on Bale's watchlist. Check out the actor's quote below:
I still haven't seen it. I will see it. Listen mate, I— it's amazing how few films I see. Every director I work with, I've seen a couple of their films, and they're always looking at me going, 'Are you kidding?' I like to really savor films, and I don't want to watch too many. But I will, I certainly will. Robert [Pattinson] is an absolutely wonderful actor. We bumped into each other, talked a little bit about it ahead of time, and I hear wonderful things.
Bale is one of the handful of Batman actors to have ever played the role in a complete trilogy. While he lacks his own solo-series, Ben Affleck has played the character in three movies, joining the DCEU as Zack Snyder's Batman in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Affleck then reprised the character in Suicide Squad and Justice League, and he is set to appear in The Flash in 2023. Michael Keaton, who will also be in The Flash, starred as the superhero in Batman '89 and Batman Returns. Assuming Pattinson gets to complete the planned The Batman movie trilogy, he should join the exclusive three-timers club.
Whether Bale watches The Batman anytime soon remains to be seen. But, either way, it's always fun seeing a former Batman actor essentially give his sign of approval to the current one, with Pattinson likely to keep the DC vigilante alive for years to come. Over the years, there have always been some fun stories about various Batman actors meeting each other and discussing their experiences portraying the DC superhero. Perhaps next time he gets asked, Bale will have seen The Batman and can share what he felt about the latest live-action incarnation of Gotham's Caped Crusader.
Source: Variety