How to win the role of Batman

I want you to remember Clark in all the years to come. In all your most private moments, I want you to remember my hand at your throat. I want you to remember, the one man who beat you.

At Comic-Con 2013 last week, director Zack Snyder (MAN OF STEEL) thrilled the crowd by announcing that the sequel to MAN OF STEEL would come out in 2015 (!!!) and be based on the BATMAN VERSUS SUPERMAN tale from the graphic novel, THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS.

First of all – go check out THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS – really wonderfully written gritty story about how and why Batman would be fighting Superman. Snyder has been careful to say that the new movie would be based on but not be an adaptation of DARK KNIGHT RETURNS to leave it up in the air who ultimately wins – Batman or Superman. Fans of Henry Cavill may not want to see him beaten up!:)

Secondly, the Baleheads are flipping out, hoping that Christian will change his mind and return to the role that has made him a star.

The Warner Bros press release pointedly said that Batman has yet to be cast, and Christian himself said that after his 3-picture contract, he would not play Batman again. More importantly to Christian, he isn’t going to take the chance of ending his role on a bad note, and obviously what made the Bale-Batman movies unique was that they were all directed by Christopher Nolan. So is he going to play the role if it’s not directed by Nolan? No way.

So who’s going to be the next Batman? The Internet fanboys are trying to draft Ryan Gosling who apparently doesn’t want to do a big movie franchise that would require a 3-picture commitment. A couple actors have already announced that they want the role – including Armie Hammer (THE LONE RANGER), Sam Worthington (Bale’s co-star from TERMINATOR SALVATION), Jensen Ackles (SUPERNATURAL), and Liam McIntyre (SPARTACUS) who was the first to tweet his interest with “dream big!”

I’m sure all of these worthy contenders have contacted their agents to start the lobbying. So let me offer all of these guys the same advice – make sure your fans rally behind you!

When Christian and I put together the campaign to go after the role of BATMAN, we knew that it was fan support that would make the difference – especially when he was originally facing off against actors with similar profile and stardom. If you haven’t read the Christian Bale biography, the actors on the Batman shortlist were: Christian, Jake Gyllenhaal, Henry Cavill, Joshua Jackson, Hugh Dancy and Cillian Murphy. At the time, none of these actors were A-list, so the deciding factor that put Christian over the top was that the fans all wanted Christian. Not just the Baleheads, but the Batfans who had to imagine if the actor would look good in a tux as Bruce Wayne and could be convincing as a fighter. With clips of AMERICAN PSYCHO and EQUILIBRIUM, I launched a campaign to get fan support. And soon fans were doing fan posters of Christian as Batman. The studio was almost sold, but the WB also ran a lot of online polls, and Christian swept every one of them. My other client, Jake Gyllenhaal, was interestingly always in 2nd place!

To my fellow Batfans – don’t waste your time on Gosling. He’s not going to be “drafted” into the role if he doesn’t want to play it. Have a look at the actors who’ve announced their interest, watch their work, and start voicing your opinions.

And actors, have some marketing smarts about this. BATMAN VS SUPERMAN is going to be an expensive movie. Cavill is now a star and will probably have a hit movie between now and 2015. The chances are high then that WB will cast a relative unknown to save some money, but if the unknown has huge fan support, that’s going to make all the difference in the world. The WB formula with BATMAN BEGINS and with MAN OF STEEL is to take the relatively unknown star and surround them with a large supporting cast. The WB doesn’t need a “name” for a franchise movie with the 2 most recognizable superheroes in the world – they need someone that can do the role and have the support of the fans. And remember, whoever plays Batman next will be compared to Christian’s performance and scrutinized very closely by the fan community. The battle plans are in the book – have a read, rally your fans, and draw up your campaign now!

By the way, the Christian Bale biography has swept this year’s book awards!:) Thank you all for your support!