Robert Pattinson Is Batman
advertisement
VOICE OVER: Rebecca Brayton
WRITTEN BY: Nick Spake
Robert Pattinson as the next Caped Crusader?! Best known for his breakout role as sparkly vampire Edward Cullen in “Twilight”, Pattinson has gone on to star in a slew of indie films. His return to blockbusters as the Dark Knight was . . . not expected. Join us as we look over his previous roles and fans' reactions to Pattinson being cast as the next Batman. What do YOU think about Warner Bros. choice of Robert Pattinson as Batman? Let us know in the comments!
Script written by Nick Spake
From vampire to Batman, Robert Pattinson is our new Dark Knight. Welcome to WatchMojo and today we’ll be discussing the casting of Robert Pattinson as next Caped Crusader.
The Caped Crusader’s latest big screen outing, simply entitled “The Batman,” is still in early development stages with a release date currently slated for June 25, 2021. Yet, the upcoming superhero film has already gone through an interesting transition. After playing a seasoned Dark Knight in “Batman v Superman,” “Suicide Squad,” and “Justice League,” Ben Affleck was set to reprise his role in a stand-alone movie. Affleck was additionally attached to co-write and direct the film. As time went by, however, Affleck’s involvement continued to dwindle. Not only did he step away from directional duties in January 2017, but the Oscar-winner officially confirmed in early 2019 that he wouldn’t be starring in the film either.
To replace Affleck behind the camera, the studio selected Matt Reeves, whose previous directing credits include “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” and “War for the Planet of the Apes.” Around the same time Affleck stepped down as the star, Reeves revealed that his “Batman” film would be a noir-driven mystery that taps into Bruce Wayne’s detective side. Exactly who would play Batman now that Ben wasn’t coming back, though? Jon Hamm, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Ryan Gosling were just a couple of fan favorites. The filmmakers, meanwhile, reportedly had their eye on Aaron Taylor Johnson, Armie Hammer, and particularly Nicholas Hoult of the “X-Men” franchise. They all lost out, however, to Robert Pattinson.
In case you’ve been out of the pop culture loop for the past decade, this English actor landed his first major film role in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” as hunky Hufflepuff Cedric Diggory. Pattinson went from one Young Adult fantasy franchise to another, taking center stage as Edward Cullen in “Twilight.” After the “Twilight Saga” wrapped up in 2012, the iconic star dialed things back with several smaller projects, including two films directed by David Cronenberg. Pattinson received the best reviews of his career in “Good Time” where he escaped into the role of a bank robber driven to take desperate measures. This hard-hitting performance garnered Pattinson an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Male Lead. He continued to wow the critics in “High Life,” delivering a powerhouse performance as a criminal who’s sent into deep space.
While Pattinson has been dominating the indie scene as of late, he seems poised for a mainstream comeback, having been cast in Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” and of course “The Batman.” Even though he’s more than proven his acting chops, not everyone was thrilled to hear Pattinson would be dawning the cape and cowl. Following early reports that Pattinson was the studio’s top choice, a petition emerged online urging Warner Bros. to cast someone else. The petition quickly accumulated over 5,000 signatures, surpassing its initial goal.
The Batman backlash all boils down to the fact that Pattinson played Edward Cullen. Despite being his breakout role, Pattinson’s work in the “Twilight” films also contributed to his six Razzie nominations. While obviously not without fans, it’s no secret that “Twilight” is also hated by many. Even Pattinson himself has repeatedly dumped on the franchise and its central vampire. That being said, the criticisms against “Twilight” really aren’t Pattinson’s fault. The role of Edward basically required him to do three things: 1) Look hot, 2) Brood in silence and 3) Uncomfortably stare at Bella from across the room. On this basis, the guy did exactly what he was paid to do and you can’t really fault him for that.
Pattinson shouldn’t take the controversy too personally, as almost every actor who’s played Batman on the silver screen was initially met with skepticism. In most cases, the haters ended up eating their own words. Having broken out in comedies like “Mr. Mom” and “Beetlejuice,” people didn’t think they could take Michael Keaton seriously as Batman. Thirty years later, Keaton is still widely seen by some as the definitive Dark Knight. Fans armed themselves with torches and pitchforks when they heard Ben Affleck would be Bruce Wayne, but his performance wound up being a redeeming quality of the otherwise divisive “Batman v Superman.” People thought Heath Ledger had been totally miscast as the Joker and he went on to become the first actor to win an Oscar for playing a comic book character. Ironically, hardly anyone seemed to bat an eye when Val Kilmer or George Clooney were cast and they’re now considered among the weaker Batmen.
The point being, you can’t always let an actor’s early work define their entire career, especially when it comes to the “Twilight” franchise. Although some “Twilight” actors, like Taylor Lautner, have struggled to distance themselves from the franchise, others have significantly grown as performances. Anna Kendrick scored an Oscar nomination for her supporting performance in “Up in the Air” and is the face of the “Pitch Perfect” series, making most of us forget that she even played Jessica Stanley in “Twilight.” Having played Bella Swan, Kristen Stewart is an easy target for ridicule. If you’ve been keeping up with her post-“Twilight” career, though, you’d know that she’s turned I a few effective performances in “Camp X-Ray,” “Still Alice,” “Clouds of Sils Maria,” and “Personal Shopper.” The same goes for Pattinson, who would be ranked among our best young actors if people would only give him a chance.
In a way, Pattinson sounds tailor-made for this role and not just because there’s an obvious link between vampires and bats. Pattinson has proven that he can play a mysterious heartthrob, similar to Bruce Wayne. In films like “Good Time,” he’s demonstrated that he can convincingly portray a gritty, tortured soul littered in physical and emotional scars, not unlike Batman. Pattinson may sparkle on the surface, but underneath that pale exterior is a Dark Knight waiting to rise up. Who knows? Maybe somewhere down the line, Pattinson will star in an adaptation of the “Batman & Dracula” trilogy, bringing things full circle.
Robert Pattinson is Batman
From vampire to Batman, Robert Pattinson is our new Dark Knight. Welcome to WatchMojo and today we’ll be discussing the casting of Robert Pattinson as next Caped Crusader.
The Caped Crusader’s latest big screen outing, simply entitled “The Batman,” is still in early development stages with a release date currently slated for June 25, 2021. Yet, the upcoming superhero film has already gone through an interesting transition. After playing a seasoned Dark Knight in “Batman v Superman,” “Suicide Squad,” and “Justice League,” Ben Affleck was set to reprise his role in a stand-alone movie. Affleck was additionally attached to co-write and direct the film. As time went by, however, Affleck’s involvement continued to dwindle. Not only did he step away from directional duties in January 2017, but the Oscar-winner officially confirmed in early 2019 that he wouldn’t be starring in the film either.
To replace Affleck behind the camera, the studio selected Matt Reeves, whose previous directing credits include “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” and “War for the Planet of the Apes.” Around the same time Affleck stepped down as the star, Reeves revealed that his “Batman” film would be a noir-driven mystery that taps into Bruce Wayne’s detective side. Exactly who would play Batman now that Ben wasn’t coming back, though? Jon Hamm, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Ryan Gosling were just a couple of fan favorites. The filmmakers, meanwhile, reportedly had their eye on Aaron Taylor Johnson, Armie Hammer, and particularly Nicholas Hoult of the “X-Men” franchise. They all lost out, however, to Robert Pattinson.
In case you’ve been out of the pop culture loop for the past decade, this English actor landed his first major film role in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” as hunky Hufflepuff Cedric Diggory. Pattinson went from one Young Adult fantasy franchise to another, taking center stage as Edward Cullen in “Twilight.” After the “Twilight Saga” wrapped up in 2012, the iconic star dialed things back with several smaller projects, including two films directed by David Cronenberg. Pattinson received the best reviews of his career in “Good Time” where he escaped into the role of a bank robber driven to take desperate measures. This hard-hitting performance garnered Pattinson an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Male Lead. He continued to wow the critics in “High Life,” delivering a powerhouse performance as a criminal who’s sent into deep space.
While Pattinson has been dominating the indie scene as of late, he seems poised for a mainstream comeback, having been cast in Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” and of course “The Batman.” Even though he’s more than proven his acting chops, not everyone was thrilled to hear Pattinson would be dawning the cape and cowl. Following early reports that Pattinson was the studio’s top choice, a petition emerged online urging Warner Bros. to cast someone else. The petition quickly accumulated over 5,000 signatures, surpassing its initial goal.
The Batman backlash all boils down to the fact that Pattinson played Edward Cullen. Despite being his breakout role, Pattinson’s work in the “Twilight” films also contributed to his six Razzie nominations. While obviously not without fans, it’s no secret that “Twilight” is also hated by many. Even Pattinson himself has repeatedly dumped on the franchise and its central vampire. That being said, the criticisms against “Twilight” really aren’t Pattinson’s fault. The role of Edward basically required him to do three things: 1) Look hot, 2) Brood in silence and 3) Uncomfortably stare at Bella from across the room. On this basis, the guy did exactly what he was paid to do and you can’t really fault him for that.
Pattinson shouldn’t take the controversy too personally, as almost every actor who’s played Batman on the silver screen was initially met with skepticism. In most cases, the haters ended up eating their own words. Having broken out in comedies like “Mr. Mom” and “Beetlejuice,” people didn’t think they could take Michael Keaton seriously as Batman. Thirty years later, Keaton is still widely seen by some as the definitive Dark Knight. Fans armed themselves with torches and pitchforks when they heard Ben Affleck would be Bruce Wayne, but his performance wound up being a redeeming quality of the otherwise divisive “Batman v Superman.” People thought Heath Ledger had been totally miscast as the Joker and he went on to become the first actor to win an Oscar for playing a comic book character. Ironically, hardly anyone seemed to bat an eye when Val Kilmer or George Clooney were cast and they’re now considered among the weaker Batmen.
The point being, you can’t always let an actor’s early work define their entire career, especially when it comes to the “Twilight” franchise. Although some “Twilight” actors, like Taylor Lautner, have struggled to distance themselves from the franchise, others have significantly grown as performances. Anna Kendrick scored an Oscar nomination for her supporting performance in “Up in the Air” and is the face of the “Pitch Perfect” series, making most of us forget that she even played Jessica Stanley in “Twilight.” Having played Bella Swan, Kristen Stewart is an easy target for ridicule. If you’ve been keeping up with her post-“Twilight” career, though, you’d know that she’s turned I a few effective performances in “Camp X-Ray,” “Still Alice,” “Clouds of Sils Maria,” and “Personal Shopper.” The same goes for Pattinson, who would be ranked among our best young actors if people would only give him a chance.
In a way, Pattinson sounds tailor-made for this role and not just because there’s an obvious link between vampires and bats. Pattinson has proven that he can play a mysterious heartthrob, similar to Bruce Wayne. In films like “Good Time,” he’s demonstrated that he can convincingly portray a gritty, tortured soul littered in physical and emotional scars, not unlike Batman. Pattinson may sparkle on the surface, but underneath that pale exterior is a Dark Knight waiting to rise up. Who knows? Maybe somewhere down the line, Pattinson will star in an adaptation of the “Batman & Dracula” trilogy, bringing things full circle.
0
0
report