Michael Keaton. Val Kilmer. George Clooney. Christian Bale. Ben Affleck. What all of these actors have in common, aside from being Hollywood A-listers, is that they have all donned the iconic cape and cowl on the big screen in recent years. The newest addition to this prestigious list is Robert Pattinson, who will star in “The Batman,” releasing March 4, 2022.
Batman is undoubtedly a very popular superhero, as nine of the films featuring his character have hit the $100 million mark at the domestic box office. Yet, the actors who have portrayed Batman have had varying success. On one end, Kilmer and Clooney take a lot of criticism for their performances, while Keaton and Bale are the fan favorites. Pattinson has a lot to live up to, but I believe that he will go down as a great Batman.
In order to understand why Pattinson has what it takes to become the Batman, we have to go back to the beginning of his career. His first big film role came in 2005 as Cedric Diggory in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” but it was 2008’s “Twilight” and its subsequent sequels that thrust him into the Hollywood spotlight. Pattison quickly became a very famous actor due to “Twilight,” but the fame came with pros and cons for him. He has discussed in interviews how it is much easier to get roles now, but he has less creative freedom with the roles he takes.
Pattinson’s experience with fame makes him the perfect actor to play Bruce Wayne, Batman’s alter ego. Wayne is a celebrity himself, as he owns Wayne Enterprises and is known for being both a playboy and a philanthropist. Wayne is traumatized by the death of his parents at a young age, and Pattinson will be able to get into his mind because of his own troubles with fame. Both Bale and Keaton were successful tapping into the darker, traumatized side of Wayne, which Pattinson should also be able to do while still maintaining the fun-loving celebrity side of him.
When it was announced that Pattinson had been cast as Batman, there was a lot of pushback from fans because of his heartthrob status from “Twilight.” However, Pattinson has reinvented his career since then by taking on numerous serious roles that have reshaped his image. In particular, he gave standout performances in 2017’s “Good Time,” a crime film that depicts a burglar trying to rescue his brother from jail, and in 2019’s “The Lighthouse,” a psychological thriller about two lighthouse keepers who go mad while stranded on an island. Both films received a 90 percent or higher critical score on Rotten Tomatoes, demonstrating how Pattinson has been able to turn his career around.
One of the most key characteristics of Batman is his dark and brooding nature, which pairs with his dedication to fighting crime. Pattinson has shown that he has the capability to play a darker persona, as his performance as a sympathetic bank robber in “Good Time” blurred the line between hero and villain. Similarly, his performance in “The Lighthouse” shows his ability to portray a tortured character who descends into madness, which is not that far from the psychological torment that Batman experiences because of his parents’ death.
Finally, Pattinson will be a great Batman because his career runs parallel to other actors that have been able to successfully make the jump to becoming a superhero. Before becoming Batman in 2005’s “Batman Begins,” Bale had played damaged characters in “American Psycho” and “The Machinist,” similar to Pattinson’s recent serious roles. Robert Downey Jr. may be most known for his tenure as Marvel’s Iron Man, but before that he struggled with fame like Pattinson, starring in prestigious films such as 1992’s “Chaplin.”
Playing Batman is one of the most coveted roles in Hollywood because of its popularity, but it takes a truly great actor to give a memorable performance as Batman. Pattinson has proven, both with his early career as a teen heartthrob and recent dramatic career, that he has the acting chops to play the playboy persona of Wayne and get into the darker psychology of Batman. Whether his performance is well received or not, Pattinson marks a new chapter in the history of Batman on the big screen.
Eli Engler is a freshman majoring in chemistry.