Bale confident for Dark Knight
Friday, 30 Nov 2007 00:01
Christian Bale broods as Batman in The Dark Knight.
Christian Bale has talked of his confidence in reprising his role as the Caped Crusader in Christopher Nolan's upcoming film The Dark Knight.
Bale played Bruce Wayne in 2005's thrilling Batman Begins, reviving a franchise that had grown stagnant after the huge misfire of Joel Schumacher's Batman and Robin.
And the 33-year-old actor has said that any initial doubts he might have felt about essaying the role of the crime-fighting billionaire were instantly assuaged after reading the proposed source material.
But with Heath Ledger providing a unique portrayal of the classic Batman villain The Joker, the stoic Dark Knight could have been blown off the screen by the cartoonish psychopath.
However Bale told Empire magazine: "I'm not worried at all.
"That was exactly the problem I had with all of the other movies.
"After I had read Frank Miller's Batman: Year One and various other graphic novels, I looked at those films and said, 'Well, how come it's always been that Batman's the most boring character?' I've never found him to be intriguing at all.
"Whereas these graphic novels depicted him as really being by far the most fascinating character. So I feel like we gained that back with Batman Begins."
He went on: "Now we've made him a character of substance, I have no problem with him competing with someone else. And that's going to make better entertainment and a better movie, which is great."
He joked: "I don't mind if everybody tries to chew up the scenery!"
Currently in post-production, The Dark Knight is scheduled for a July 2008 release in the UK.
The January issue of Empire Magazine is out now.