“I’m not going to complain about it”: Did Christian Bale have it easier than every other Batman?
Christian Bale is renowned for his dedication to preparation for his roles. He’s known to stay in character as much as possible when on set and to use an American accent during promotional tours for his American characters – so much so that many fans don’t realise he’s actually Welsh. However, his most extreme preparation is undoubtedly physical, as his weight is known to yo-yo shockingly from film to film.
Most infamously, he lost almost all his body fat to play the shockingly thin protagonist in The Machinist, only to gain 99 pounds in under a year to star in Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins. He continued to fluctuate between Batman’s hulking buff to slim and simply rotund as he returned to the role twice more while filming several other films. However, this gruelling process has never dampened Bale’s appreciation for the role.
Speaking to the BBC, he reminisced about chatting with director Christopher Nolan while still filming The Machinist: “I was 121 pounds, and I couldn’t do a single push-up—this is maybe not the guy you want to cast as Batman.” But despite his worries at the time, he nonchalantly shrugged it off, claiming that while it was arduous, he clearly managed to achieve the right look for Bruce Wayne.
The arduous journey from stick insect to superhero didn’t manage to put him off the role, so it’s no surprise that Batman’s iconic costume didn’t do the trick either. This is where he claims he had it “easiest out of all the other actors to play Batman”, thanks to Welsh costume designer Lindy Hemming’s lightweight creation.
Most of the other actors who played the role had their fair share of complaints. Pretty much everyone had issues with moving their heads, leading to that classic Batman trait of moving the whole upper body to just look at your acquaintance. Val Kilmer even called his time in the Batsuit “isolating” due to his inability to hear the cast and crew, causing him to be essentially mute on set. Then comes the sheer heat of being in an entire silicone bodysuit and cowl, plus the impairment to sight and, awkwardly, going to the bathroom. Not to mention George Clooney’s infamous bat nipples.
In contrast, Bale’s Batman was actually able to turn his head thanks to Hemmings’ suit’s improved mobility and lightness. Batman was robotic no more. Bale remarked that the only Batman who might have had it even easier than him was Adam West’s original Batman. West’s costume embodied the more classic comic book look with a costume akin to a grey and black catsuit. But West’s “flimsy” and campy suit wasn’t a match for the later, darker iterations of Batman.
However, it wasn’t entirely a walk in the park for Bale either. The actor remarked that the suit was hot and sweaty, but at the end of the day, it was worth it to play the dark and brooding superhero: “I’m not going to complain about it because I got to play Batman.” This says it all, really, especially considering his physical transformation in the run-up. If anyone can survive that, not once but three times, to take on the caped crusader, then they’re surely willing to survive the dark and claustrophobic nature of The Batsuit. Or perhaps Christian Bale was simply born in the dark.
