How Christian Bale convinced other actors to back away from Patrick Bateman role: “Understand what you’re up against”
Even though the first leading role of his career came playing the main character in a Steven Spielberg movie, it wasn’t until more than a decade after the release of Empire of the Sun that Christian Bale outlined in no uncertain terms that his career was going to have plenty of longevity.
He’d been working solidly in the years after his breakout performance, but it wasn’t until he tore the house down as Patrick Bateman in American Psycho that he became undeniable. It was the perfect springboard to showcase his immersive, chameleonic talents, which would go on to become a hallmark of an actor now firmly entrenched as one of the very best in the business.
Things could have gone a completely different way, though, with Bale being placed through the professional wringer before he shot a single frame of footage. Director Mary Harron had always envisioned him in the lead role, but for a while, it looked as if neither of them would be involved.
The pair were dropped by the studio in favour of the bigger-name pairing of Oliver Stone and Leonardo DiCaprio before the latter vacated American Psycho in favour of Danny Boyle’s The Beach, with the Academy Award-winning Platoon director following suit when the opportunity to collaborate with the Titanic star was off the table.
It was then offered to Ewan McGregor – who’d ironically been earmarked for the part in The Beach eventually played by DiCaprio – while Harron also conferred with Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Edward Norton, and Vince Vaughn. She always wanted Bale first and foremost, but having been rejected by so many recognisable names, the studio eventually relented and hired him on a paltry $50,000 salary.
In an interview with GQ, Bale conceded that when it came to securing the Bateman gig, “I kept on at it like a crazy bastard”. Even when DiCaprio was attached, he “kept rehearsing, training, and preparing” in the event things didn’t work out. When those closest to him began to display concern for how hard he was working for a part that wasn’t his, he remained steadfast. “People would look at me sort of worryingly,” he said. “And I’d stare them in the face and say, ‘Listen, I am making this movie.'”
He was obviously proven right in the end, but he wasn’t above using intimidation tactics, either. When the offer went out to McGregor, Bale confirmed that he’d “phoned a few people and let them know my commitment,” explaining that he’d “called them all and told them it was my role.” Rather ominously, his intonations sounded so threatening to be almost Bateman-esque.
“Don’t touch. Step away. Or if you’re not going to step away, understand what you’re up against” was his preferred call to arms, which caused McGregor to move aside and make Bale’s dedication completely worth it in the end.
