Fanboy Fails: Casting Choices That Everybody Hated But Turned Out To Be Great

Anne Hathaway As Catwoman

This is one that I’m personally guilty of complaining about, and I know I’m not the only one. When I first heard Anne Hathaway was going to be Catwoman, I was upset for several reasons. First of all, I’ve never been a huge fan of Catwoman. Halle Berry’s version soured me on the character far beyond anything that the memories of the comics or cartoons could salvage. Also, at that point, despite her other successful roles, Anne Hathaway was still the girl from The Princess Diaries in my mind. Not exactly the embodiment of an ass-kicking super heroine.

Aside from my personal hesitations, many other fans had their own problems with Hathaway as the character, the most prevalent being that she simply wasn’t sexy enough for the role. Sure, Hathaway’s Catwoman had zero chance of being as sexy as the more provocative depictions in the comic books, but I’m not sure that’s even humanly possible. There is no question that Hathaway is a beautiful woman, but was she the right kind of sexy to play the ferociously feline female villain? Most people said not a chance.

My distaste for the casting continued all the way into the first scene of The Dark Knight Rises. Watching Anne Hathaway walk around as a waitress, and even when she was confronting Bruce Wayne, all I could think was, “Oh great, her Catwoman is going to ruin a movie I’ve been anticipating for four years.” Then she was in another scene. And another. And with every second Hathaway was on screen, I fell more and more in love with her portrayal of the character.

By the end of the movie, I realized I had enjoyed watching Catwoman as much as Bane, or John Blake, or even Batman. Hathaway said that if Nolan was willing to, she would reprise the role for a Catwoman solo film. While the chances are slim to none that it will happen, it’s still something that I, and most fans of the Dark Knight Trilogy, would welcome with open arms.