Batman Begins was an ambitious project, and not just because Christopher Nolan brought gravitas to a franchise previously known for its bullet-proof nipples.
The Dunkirk director was tasked with starting from scratch with the Caped Crusader’s origin story, and he took that challenge very seriously indeed. It’s why Christian Bale doesn’t even pull on his cowl until mid-way through the film.
Studio bosses weren’t too pleased with that, of course. Quite understandably, they wanted a little more Batman for their buck. But Christopher Nolan had the perfect reasoning for his decision.
Speaking at a Dark Knight trilogy marathon at the Universal Cinema AMC, Hollywood, on Saturday, Nolan revealed that he analysed other action films to find out when heroes generally pull on their costumes, particularly Richard Donner’s 1978 classic Superman.
It meant that Nolan knew exactly how to respond when the studio aired its grievances. "I was able to say ‘Well, Christopher Reeve didn’t put on the suit until 53 minutes in.’”
The director’s dedication to doing his homework initially impressed the crowd, according to the Hollywood Reporter, until he cheekily revealed: “That statistic is not true by the way. It’s actually a little earlier.”
He also opened up about auditioning Peaky Blinders star Cillian Murphy for Batman, before ultimately casting him as the Scarecrow.
"Christian was actually the first actor I met for the role. And so I think I had a pretty strong sense from there," said Nolan. "Cillian Murphy was somebody who I had seen in Danny Boyle’s film, 28 Days Later, and he screen tested for Batman, actually, and gave an extraordinary test. And so we wound up casting him as Scarecrow based on that."
The Batman trivia didn’t stop there. He also revealed that the scene in The Dark Knight where Batman crashes his Batmobile into the Joker’s garbage truck was a miniature. “I don’t think anyone’s ever noticed it’s a miniature.”
