For Robert Pattinson, filming The Batman was a surreal experience at times, and not just because he normally doesn’t go for the superhero-type roles in movies.
Pattinson, who plays the titular role in the film, recalled in a recent interview with MovieMaker what it was like to film the movie under strict protocols due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Fans may remember that back in March 2020, when the pandemic inspired widespread shutdowns across the U.S., The Batman became one of many films that suffered delays, just two months into production.
When it came time to return to the set to resume filming the following September, production shut down briefly once again due to an unnamed member of the production team testing positive to COVID.
Pattinson said when the filming finally resumed — again — the cast and crew had to adhere to protocols “like a military operation.” Sometimes, there wasn’t even anyone giving orders behind the lens, he added.
“We had earpieces in to have direction a lot of the time to kind of limit the amount of interactions. The most odd thing is that a lot of scenes had no one behind the camera, because we were trying — if it was already a setup, they’d just be remotely controlling it. Odd. Especially when you’re on a big set — just no one around at all. That took a lot of getting used to.”
At the beginning of the pandemic, Pattinson inadvertently caused fans to flip at the time when he jokingly said in an interview with GQ under quarantine that he wasn’t actually working out that much.
Although he was just trying to be self-deprecating, many fans took the remark to mean he wasn’t taking the role as seriously as he should be.
“You’re playing Batman. You have to work out,” Pattinson said.
He admitted that since he was in lockdown, he did revert to a “lower gear of working out” at the time. Who said Pattinson isn’t relatable?
Catch The Batman when it swoops into theaters March 4.
