Batman: Year One (and casting ideas) (1 Viewer)

[Dan Rudolph]

The Iowa Boonies have produced such luminaries as Riley Finn, Jim Kirk and Andy Williams. besides, Cedar Rapids is hardly boonies.

 

[JonZ]

Im 6'1 and 230 pounds and dont think Im physically impressive enough to scare people(that arent afraid of a fight anyway).There are guys in my gym that are bigger than me.

Michael Keaton is what,5'8or 9 170 pounds? Of course a smaller man whos trained correctly can take on much bigger guys but being physically imposing is part of what makes the Bat Costume and character work.

I felt they should have gone with a unknown, but if they needed a name for the first movie,I always thought Bruce Willis would have done very well.

He had a decent build they could work on and I always felt he had the smugness and look to be a great Bruce Wayne.

 

[John Doran]

Im 6'1 and 230 pounds and dont think Im physically impressive enough to scare people(that arent afraid of a fight anyway).

hey, man. you're a big boy. if that's a lean 230, then i say you should be batman.
as for the physically imposing thing, the whole raison d'etre of wayne's adopting the bat motif was precisely to strike fear into the hearts of criminals. in short, he became batman precisely to make everyone afraid of a fight.
so there. i think the part's a lock for you, JonZ.

 

[JonZ]

Right, but mask or no mask, I dont find Michael Keaton to be imposing
I dont think Id get the part, Im a Mudblood (to use a phrase from the book I just finished reading)

 

[John Doran]

Right, but mask or no mask, I dont find Michael Keaton to be imposing

you make a good point. but i think that this is wholly and entirely tim burton's fault for making what is for me almost the worst batman movie possible. just thinking about it makes me alternately sick, horrified, and angry.

burton could have made genghis khan look like a girlscout in those movies.

someone should burn every existing copy of those movies and then use a giant neuralizer to make us all forget it was even made.

 

[Dennis]

I think much of the bitching about Ashton comes from the WHY the studio wants him, moreso than about the actor himself.

Big box office numbers maybe?
That's fine, I just want to see chances taken like Richard Donner did in the late seventies and Ang Lee did recently.
Going back to Tim Burton's reasoning for choosing Michael Keaton, he said it had to do with his eyes, you can see something behind them. I have to admit, it worked to a certain degree, I just would rather have someone with a lower profile.
We need first and foremost, a very good actor, young, at least 6', and relatively unknown, that eliminates just about everyone mentioned here.
I am not counting out Christian Bale, I'll just reserve judgement until I've seen Equilibrium, but I haven't been impressed with his last few efforts.

 

[Kachi Khatri]

I stongly concur John!
Somehow those Batman franchises just don't sit well with me. :frowning:
I too just want to flush those movies down the toilet and hope they never existed.
Let's hope 'Year One' performs well when it comes out so I can quickly forget the others ever existed.

 

[Dan Rudolph]

Since some people are making a big deal about height, I should point out Ashton Kutcher is 6'3". Not sure how much he weighs, but he seems pretty built.

 

[JonZ]

It does my heart good to see some here to realize Burtons Batman was so "off" its a bad joke.Id gladly burn every copy in existance.

About 2 years ago, I thought Id give it another chance after not seeing it for about 6 years(Best Buy had it for $9)

I ended up returning it,I hated it so much - which Ive never done with a DVD before or since.

Dan,

I could see Kutcher playing other characters - The Flash for example, but hes not Bruce Wayne and definitely not Batman(which is the real person - Bruce Wayne is the "act")

 

[Dennis]

It does my heart good to see some here to realize Burtons Batman was so "off" its a bad joke.Id gladly burn every copy in existance.

One of the things I found funny about Batman is that when they were hyping it, they said that it was going to be really "dark" and nothing like the TV show. Well, I found it to be really "light" and too much like the TV show. At least the TV show admitted to being campy.

 

[todd s]

This was posted at the Toon Zone Forum. If true, it is great news....

From ChristopherNolan.Net

"Hello, I know I am not one of your main sources, but in the state of turmoil we are in regarding the Batman/Ashton Kutcher situation and the outrage of Batman fans, I felt I had to let someone know the real situation. You are one of the most viewed Nolan sites out there, so I decided to come to you.

I check your site frequently and would like to comment on the Ashton Kutcher situation. Ashton is not Batman. He is WB's #1 candidate for the picture, but not Nolan's. Nolan has several unknown/semi-stablished actors in mind and will most likely end up with one of those as a compromise to the Ashton/Guy Pearce situation. Luckily, WB are indeed letting Nolan have a little more control with this project as they are very pleased with his ideas and views for the movie. Notice how WB let Nolan hire his own writer (Goyer due to his comic experience) and have almost complete control. The good thing is, what we see on the screen will most likely be Nolan's true, full vision, without too many compromises, this includes actors.

Nobody wants another Superman situation. Batman is now on the fast track my friend, and WB wants it done right to compete with Marvel and bring DC back in a big way. The new DC comics movies are going to be darker and more loyal to the source material then before. They are looking for a mature audience believe it or not, and Batman, the darkest character, is the way to establish it right.

And what do you know, Batman-On-Film is already on the right track with their recent report (6/25) on a 2005 Summer release and the fact that there are several names in the running for Batman. We wont know for sure until screen tests are done. If Kutcher has the best test, then he'll be Batman. But right now, he has a long way to go yet. Theres a big obstacle for him to overcome, Nolan. Sure everybody gets along on the project, but that doesnt mean they cant have creative differences. WB hired Nolan for a reason.

So again, hold your horses. Kutcher is not Batman and may never be, Nolan will probably go with an unknown as a compromise , unless Kutcher blows everybody away, and while he tested well for Superman, it was just that...decent."

 

[chung_sotheby]

If Chris Klein weren't such a pansy-ass and horrible actor, I would say that he could pull off Bruce Wayne and Batman. He has the perfect look and build (about 6'1, well-built, dark hair). But he's banging Katie Holmes, so maybe he has the same luck with the ladies as Bruce Wayne has.
As for Christian Bale, he would be pretty good as Bruce Wayne, but I think he would be perfect as Bond (can o' worms, open )
I think that I would rather sex with a female Gelgamek, the ones with the vaginas that are three feet wide and filled with razor-sharp teeth, then see Ashton Kutcher as Bruce Wayne. The guy is simply irritating. Also, he looks like a shaved poodle.
As for other suggestions, I could see maybe Thomas Jane, Brendan Fraser, or Liev Schreiber in the Bruce Wayne role. Jane may be too southern, even though he has a good amount of charisma and pain (see *61 and Boogie Nights), and I think that Fraser is very underrated as an actor because (just see Gods & Monsters again). I have always liked Liev Schreiber, and he was great as Orson Welles. Tall, dark, brooding, yet also very suave.

 

[Dennis]

Great choices chung!

I can see Brendan Fraser and Liev Schreiber in the role. I know it goes against what I said before about high-profile actors, but they are both so good I don't see them as potential distractions. Brendan has the higher profile but he's not at the Brad Pitt level which is a good thing, plus he's just as good an actor, if not better. Liev Schreiber has a much lower profile and is as versatile as Fraser so you couldn't go wrong with either.

 

[todd s]

Some more tidbits:
From BATMAN ON FILM
http://www.batman-on-film.com
An anonymous source chimes in with Chris Nolan's feelings about the Batman project.
FYI: Kutcher will NOT be Cast as Bruce Wayne. Nolan want's an unknown, He thinks Kutcher comes with too much baggage (Dude Where's My Car?, That 70's Show).
He thinks Kutchers antics as of late to try and gain publicity nods and attention (dating Demi) is uncalled for and pathetic.
Apparently Nolan told Kutchers camp that he would consider him for the part if he started acting like Mature Hollywood and less like the idiot he plays on That 70's Show. He doesn't think that Kutcher would suit the needs of the BATMAN audience, the way that Clooney/Kilmer did, and even though Nolan wants "Young Hollywood" in the next Batman flick, he said that Kutcher just doesn't fit the part, nor will he ever.
When Nolan told Ashton's camp he needed to be more mature, he didn't mean to grab an older more respected Actress in Hollywood and try to "Date" her. The Demi Moore/Ashton Kutcher "Romance" is a publicity stunt, One which will not score Kutcher the part in the new Batman Flick.
Other Batman News: Al Gough will be the only Original cast member to Return (Gough of course plays the part of Alfred Pennyworth). Christopher Lloyd has been chosen to play the part of the evil villain Dr. Jonathan Crane (AKA "The Scarecrow"). These are the only two cast members attached to the project thus far, and I can guarantee that Ashon Kutchers name will not be included in the credits when the film finally does hit theaters.

 

[George Monroy]

That last bit sounds great to me.

 

[Dan Rudolph]

Christopher Lloyd sounds like a very good choice here.

 

[John Doran]

they should pretend like that unmitigated piece of shit "batman and robin" didn't exist, and do a good story with mr. freeze, and cast patrick stewart in the role....
i swear they had him in mind when they drew the freeze character for the animated series.
i can't imagine more ideal casting than that. really.
the only problem i can foresee is that stewart would in all likelihood totally steal the show. but then, who wouldn't want to watch a movie where that was a problem?

 

[David Lee]

If he wasn't 5'7, I would like Joaquin Phoenix. He's got the perfect jaw and lips and he could play the tortured soul part perfectly. So if size isn't a priority I would pick him, especially in a Year One movie.

 

[Dan Rudolph]

David, build scale sets and cast other short actors.

 

[Russell B]

Jason Mewes should be Batman.