Who Should Be Batman?

[Jack-Hammer]

A few weeks ago, it was announced that the next Superman sequel would be a crossover with Batman. As these are arguably the two most iconic fictional characters of the 20th Century, it's generated a great deal of buzz and excitement among fans. Henry Cavill will reprise the role of Superman for the film and the latest buzz revolves around who should be the latest to take up the mantle of The Dark Knight. As of right now, according to The Hollywood Reporter, there are six front runners for the part:

Josh Brolin - At 46 years old, Brolin is the oldest of the supposed top choices. Brolin's career has really taken off since his appearance in the critically praised No Country for Old Men. He won great critical praise & various critics awards for his role in the movie. He also won several major awards for his role in the 2008 film Milk, which garnered him an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Brolin is also known for the atrocious adaptation of Jonah Hex. Brolin is someone that does have sort of the classic, square jawed handsome face that fits Bruce Wayne, at least in my opinion. He's a talented actor that I believe can certainly give the character that gloomy, brooding edge that's been one of its hallmarks.

Ryan Gosling - At 32 years of age, Gosling is the youngest of the supposed top choices. While not really a household name, Gosling is probably among the most critically acclaimed actors of the past decade. He's won or been nominated for numerous prestigious awards, including 3 Golden Globe nominations & 1 Academy Award nomination. He's best known for films like The Notebook, Half Nelson and Blue Valentine. Women swoon over him, especially for his performances is "chick flicks" like The Notebook and Blue Valentine. In some ways, the guy puts me in mind of Johnny Depp before the Pirates movies came out in that he was highly acclaimed but not known for being a big box office draw.

Joe Manganiello - At 36 years of age, Joe Manganiello is best known for his role as werewolf Alicde Herveaux from the series True Blood. A little known fact is his portrayal of Flash Thompson in the 2002 Spider-Man film. While not as acclaimed critically as Brolin or Gosling, due to the success of True Blood, he might actually be more well known among fans.

Richard Armitage - Armitage is a 41 year old British actor that's probably best known for his portrayal of Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit trilogy. As he's less well known than these other three, I'd say his salary as Batman would probably be pretty cheap, comparatively speaking.

Matthew Goode - Another British actor, 35 year old Matthew Goode is probably best known to American audiences for his portrayal of Ozymandias in the 2009 adaptation of the classic comic book Watchmen. As with Armitage, he's not terribly well known among American moviegoers or television viewers, so it's hard to expect him to command a huge salary for this film if chosen.

Max Martini - 43 year old American actor Max Martini is probably best known for his portrayal of Herc Hansen in the 2013 summer blockbuster Pacific Rim. As with these final three of the supposed top candidates, he's not all that well known and studios do love to sign guys who aren't well known for this kind of role because, initially, they're not going to have to fork over an incredible fortune.

So, these are said to be the top choices for the next actor to don the cape & cowl of Batman. None of these actors are known for being major box office draws or for roles in major summer blockbuster action flicks. However, the beauty about a role such as Batman is that the character is so popular and well established that you don't have to be huge star. The character and the film in & of itself is all but guaranteed to draw massive money at the box office.

Who would you personally like to see as Batman in this film? Any of these guys or anyone else for that matter? As for me, I think I'd probably go with:

Hugh Jackman - As we all know, Jackman is known for his portrayal of Wolverine in the X-Men films and in two spin off films. Jackman is a highly acclaimed actor with numerous major awards & nominations and certainly has name recognition. Even if fans & critics haven't been thrilled with the X-Men films as a whole, Jackman has often received huge praise for his portrayal of Wolverine. I have little doubt that he could bring the same level of quality to Bruce Wayne. At 44 years of age, Jackman has the look of a man well over a decade younger. As seen in his portrayals of Wolverine, he's obviously someone that has no trouble getting into shape for this sort of physically demanding role. The guy is flat out ripped without having the massive size that one would associate with steroid use. Jackman has the range & acting ability to really set Bruce Wayne & Batman apart from each other, as if they're each two different people. I also think that Jackman could be able to do something that we haven't really seen from Batman yet: give a performance that's not overshadowed by another actor's portrayal of another character. Jackman would certainly be an expensive choice to portray Batman, far more so I'd imagine than any of the supposed top choices, but I do believe that he could take the Batman character to a different level.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

Whoever it is, I'm sure nobody will ever be bad as Val Kilmer or George Clooney. Kilmer was horribly dull as both Bruce Wayne and Batman, and Clooney just seemed out of place. If I remember correctly, Clooney envisioned the Bruce Wayne character as a gay man, and he channeled that perception into his performance for the character. Why that made any sense to Clooney or Schumacher, I'll never know.

For me, it's between Josh Brolin and Ryan Gosling, and right now, I'm leaning towards Gosling. Gosling usually portrays a serious, but flawed man, who's trying to find some peace in his life. His character was more of an anti-hero in The Place Beyond The Pines, but still, Gosling is usually a good guy. And he showed he can be more loose and have some fun in Crazy, Stupid, Love. I still haven't seen Only God Forgives, but I haven no doubt Gosling has all the right tools and the range to pull off the Bruce Wayne and Batman personas.

I enjoy Brolin, but I feel he's better as a full blown bad guy. His dirty cop character in American Gangster is a prime example of this. Jonah Hex was dogshit, but you have to give Brolin credit, because he gave it his all. And unfortunately for him, Brolin was surrounded by a terrible screenplay, incompetent directing, and yeah, Megan Fox. But Hex is an anti-hero, who takes matters into his own hands. Brolin was able to pull it off, and he was the only bright spot in that movie, but Batman is not that type of guy. I have no problems picturing Brolin as Bruce Wayne, because he has the perfect look and demeanor for the wealthy millionaire playboy. But as Batman? I don't see it.

 

[LSN80]

For me, it's between Josh Brolin and Ryan Gosling, and right now, I'm leaning towards Gosling. Gosling usually portrays a serious, but flawed man, who's trying to find some peace in his life. His character was more of an anti-hero in The Place Beyond The Pines, but still, Gosling is usually a good guy. And he showed he can be more loose and have some fun in Crazy, Stupid, Love. I still haven't seen Only God Forgives, but I haven no doubt Gosling has all the right tools and the range to pull off the Bruce Wayne and Batman personas.

Before I even saw the choices Jack-Hammer provided, and your choice, I was thinking Gosling off the top of my head. He's seemingly the hottest actor in Hollywood right now, and what better way to attempt to break ticket sales records then by having a sure blockbuster headlined by the man who is arguably the top actor in the business today, at least by mainstream's standards?

Gosling, it seems, always plays the strong silent type, one that lives by his own moral code. A lot of good movies there, Mitch, but I think the best one of all that personifies this is in Drive. He's ruthless, foreboding, but also with a good heart and a certain set of "rules" he lives by when he drives. Just like Batman, he let his actions speak louder then his words, and like Batman, he just couldn't get it right in the romance department. Still, he went out of his way and even over the top(the elevator scene?)to protect people he cared about.

I like Manganiello, but I don't quite think he looks the part to play Batman. I haven't seen True Blood, but based on his work in guest spots on How I Met Your Mother, he seems too over the top to play Batman. As for Brolin, I liked him both in No Country For Old Men and American Gangster. He's shown he can play both protagonist and antagonist very well, but if they're going to use him, one would think it would be a one-off given his age. I'd rather see an actor in the role who could do multiple movies, and Brolin doesn't seem to fit the bill.

As for the other three, I'm familar with them, and I liked Matthew Goode in A Single Man and Watchmen both, but feel he's more suited for a supporting role then a starring one, with the Batman role squarely being the latter. With Armitage, I can't get the image of as Thorin playing the harp and singing out of my head from The Hobbit, although he certainly displayed the haughty qualities suitable for being Bruce Wayne. I just struggle seeing him as Batman. As for Max Martini, as Jack-Hammer pointed out, I know him by name recognition and little else, so it's hard for me to have an opinion on him.

studios do love to sign guys who aren't well known for this kind of role because, initially, they're not going to have to fork over an incredible fortune.

It's hard to argue this point, but let's flip this on it's head. This is bound to be a movie with a huge budget, so paying a few extra million for a well-known name such as Gosling, or your choice, Jackman, isn't much of a stretch. You mentioned the displeasure of audiences with the choice of Cavill as Superman, imagine the displeasure with the casting of two fairly unknowns in both title roles.

The Avengers worked because it was a Blockbuster with major characters, but also because it had RObert Downey Jr., Gwenyth Paltrow, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Jeremy Renner, Scarlotte Johanssen, Chris Evans and of course, Samuel L. Jackson. All had previously been leads or major players in big-budget blockbusters prior to it. So while the temptation is there, a movie, even a Superman/Batman cross-over, is going to sell much better starring Ryan Gosling or Hugh Jackman then....Max Martini.

With all that being said, I'd go with Gosling. Strike while the proverbial iron is hot with him off the heels of three films this year, and two more to be released in 2014. He'll bring out both fans of action movies because of the Batman name, and even women who would be otherwise uninterested because of his sex appeal.

 

[Danger Burger]

Just to throw a spanner in the works (my pleasure), I'm going to have to dessent on the Idea of Gosling as Batman. I'm a huge fan of Gosling, ever since I saw the United States of Leland. Dude can act. Great in most everything he's been in. But he is VERY soft spoken. His voice doesn't do what a Batman voice would need to do. It's not an intimidating voice. He can act it how he wants, but I can't see the voice working.

Karl Urban is a guy with a little talk behind him that I could see pulling it off. He was a perfect Dredd and he has the look and the voice. He doesn't shy away from these types of roles either.

I don't think I'll be too bothered whoever it winds up being. I've read around 40 years of Batman comics, and the one thing I can say is that there are hundreds of ways to do Batman right. If the actor is competant and commited, and the script is good, we should be secure.

 

[TM Punk]

John Hamm from Mad Men would be a good fit if they domt mind going with an older guy. Like Josh Brolin, Hamm has a great jaw, very square. Dude looks great in a suit. He has a great voice. He can pull off a cocky, arrogant rich guy. And he's already been in super hero rumors as a potential replacement as Iron Man had disney not been able to come up with the funding to secure Robert Downy Jr. He's my pick.

 

[Dowdsy McDowds]

I guess a lot will depend on how old they want to portray Batman/Bruce Wayne.

Gosling, while a fine actor, doesn't strike me as a great choice for the role. He has shown a varied range and been able to carry smaller films incredibly well but I'm just not sure I see him filling the cowl.

I'd like to see Michael Fassbender be at least considered for the role. The actor who next plays Batman will likely be compared to Bale's performance and Fassbender played a character not a million miles away from American Psycho's Patrick Bateman in Shame. He displayed some great inner rage as Magneto in First Class and naturally seems like a sharp, cosmopolitan man, much akin to Bruce Wayne.

 

[TheHeartbreakPunk]

As for the actors that have already been mentioned, I would have to go with either Michael fassbender or Ryan gosling. I think that both of them would bring a serious tone to the new batman. I would rather see fassbender just because I think he looks more the type for batman, and he's already proved that he can be a badass in x-men first class. That would be the conflict with him though, as he would be portraying two different comic book characters at one time with days of future past coming out in 2014, and if any future x-men movies come out after that.

As for my preference, I think that Chris pine could be an awesome batman. He looks the part, he's proved he can do action films(star trek), and he would bring an interesting tone to the role. I think he would be better suited going for the worlds greatest detective batman than the beat everyone up style, which could work in the new movies.

 

[TWJC: The Beginning]

The guy only has to vaguely look like batman/Bruce. I'd cast a guy on his acting chops first and his modeling portfolio second. You also can't have a guy who is too big of a name already otherwise you see that guy instead of Bruce Wayne/Batman.

I have no suggestions at the moment.

 

[Sexcellence of Sexecution]

Well, they've cast Ben Affleck as Batman.

Hopefully he's better in this than he was in Daredevil.

 

[Dowdsy McDowds]

I've read this Daredevil complaint a few times now and it's pretty silly.

Considering Bale was in mediocre films like Equilibrium and Reign of Fire where he was far from his best form, he was an excellent Batman just 3 years later.

Daredevil was out, what, in 2001? There or thereabouts? Yeh, that's over a decade ago. In just the last 4-5 years, Affleck has shown what a good actor and director he can be in dramatic/crime films in Argo and The Town.

As I said in the spam thread, I'm optimistic about this because its a more mature Affleck that's taking on the role now.

 

[Sexcellence of Sexecution]

I've read this Daredevil complaint a few times now and it's pretty silly.

Considering Bale was in mediocre films like Equilibrium and Reign of Fire where he was far from his best form, he was an excellent Batman just 3 years later.

Daredevil was out, what, in 2001? There or thereabouts? Yeh, that's over a decade ago. In just the last 4-5 years, Affleck has shown what a good actor and director he can be in dramatic/crime films in Argo and The Town.

As I said in the spam thread, I'm optimistic about this because its a more mature Affleck that's taking on the role now.

I wasn't doubting him because he starred in Daredevil, I was just saying I hope he does better now than he did in that film.

 

[Dowdsy McDowds]

Oh I don't think that's even in question, seeing as the director of Daredevil also made such classics as Ghost Rider and Jack fucking Frost. Even if Zach Snyder favours style over substance, he's still likely to make a much better film than any of those 3 creations from Mark Steven Johnson.

Also I'd go back to citing 2 more recent films of Affleck's where he is closer to Batman/Bruce Wayne's juggling act as much better indicators of how he's going to perform.

 

[Mitch Henessey]

While I didn't jump out of my chair after reading the news about Affleck being the new Batman, I don't think he's a bad choice at all.

Affleck has had more time grow and develop his kills as an actor since Daredevil, Jersey Girl (my pick for Kevin Smith's worst film ever), and that abomination Gigli, and I believe he's a lot more polished and refined now a days.

I also think a lot of people are horribly underestimating Ben's acting abilities. Let's not forget about his flashes of potential in Good Will Hunting, and Affleck easily gave the best performances in Armageddon and Pearl Harbor (2001), two films (ironically enough Michael Bay directed both turds) that were trashed critically for the most part, and you could say Affleck almost did enough to save both films. And Ben looks great so far in the trailers for Runner, Runner.

Ben has what it takes to be Batman/Bruce Wayne, and as an actor, he's delivered two high quality performances in The Town and Argo recently, so I'm sure he'll step up to the challenge.

I'm sort of bummed out Gosling didn't receive the role, but Brolin not getting it doesn't bother me too much anymore. As I said in my first post, I could easily picture him as Bruce Wayne, but I can not in any way shape or form picture him as Batman. Plus, I like the guy, and I believe he's better playing a bad guy/dick, but Brolin has been riding the No Country For Old Men wave for a while now. Brolin had been around for a while before, but No Country For Old Men put him on the map. Since then, he really hasn't done anything Oscar worthy, and if my memory is correct, W. was his last starring role, but W. was a pretty lousy film all around.

So while No Country For Old Men was a good springboard for showing Brolin's potential, he really hasn't been able to show us that next level for something to justify the hype.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I can't say I'm exactly thrilled but I do think he'd make a better choice than any of the various "top choices" that were originally announced. Affleck, while 41 years old, looks like someone that's a good decade younger. That's a positive aspect of his look and he's already said to be training to get into shape for the role. If he's able to really portray Bruce Wayne & Batman as two different people with two seemingly different personalities, then it'll make him the best to don the cape & cowl in my opinion thus far. Wayne is supposed to be a billionaire playboy and I've yet to see anyone make him seem as though he's nothing deeper than what he's supposed to be: a flashy rich guy living a carefree lifestyle. I've seen Affleck do characters like that, so if he can balance out the foppishness of the billionaire playboy with the brooding menace of the Dark Knight, then it'll be a performance worth watching.

Affleck has been in some pretty shitty films, that's definitely true. From about 2003 through about 2006, it was just one big pile of shit after another. He started to get back into the swing of things with Hollywoodland as far as establishing himself as someone who can be a good actor. Affleck has gotten FAR more praise and general success as a writer, director and producer than as an actor. Batman is such an iconic character, he's practically a license to print money, so if Affleck isn't really able to get over playing such a popular character, maybe he'd be better off spending most of his time behind the camera in areas where he's certainly show unquestioned success.