Although the Batman film franchise has brought joy to millions of people since 1943 (oh yes, we’re counting the serials starring Lewis Wilson), it’s certainly had its ups and downs. After all, they each can’t be The Dark Knight Trilogy.
No matter which movies are to your liking, most of you will probably agree that Batman & Robin was a failure on pretty much every level. Although, I do experience much amusement whenever seeing Arnold Schwarzenegger’s take on Mr. Freeze.
What you may or may not know, though, was that Warner Bros. were confident in the film prior to its release and thought it would be a grand slam with moviegoers, so much that they were ready to move forward with a sequel titled Batman Triumphant or Batman Unchained, depending on whom you ask on what day of the week. But when Batman & Robin bombed, plans for that and a Nightwing spinoff were canned.
Of course, two of the guys who came out of the situation with the most egg on their faces were stars George Clooney and Chris O’Donnell, the former of which recently revealed to The Hollywood Reporter that the box office flop served as a pivotal moment in his career:
“It’s really easy to pick: Batman & Robin. That’s not a joke. Up until that moment, I was an actor only concerned with finding work. After the failure of that film creatively, I understood that I needed to take control of the films I made, not just the role. My next three films were Out of Sight, Three Kings and O Brother, Where Art Thou?”
While Clooney is correct about choosing the right projects and acquiring wisdom with age and experience, I doubt his gig as the Caped Crusader was merely a paycheck to him, so I find it completely possible for his statement to be taken out of context. I mean, few actors would pass up the chance to play such an icon, but none could have imagined the end product would wind up being a laughing stock.
For more on Batman & Robin, be sure to check out our humorous 20th anniversary retrospective from last summer.
