Why Christian Bale Still Hasn’t Watched The Batman Yet

Many fans were excited when Christian Bale was announced to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Gorr the God Butcher. He’s one of the last actors most would expect to take that dive, yet director Taika Waititi was somehow able to convince him. Based on the trailers and footage available so far, it seems he’s going to make for a terrifying addition to the MCU. However, even though he’ll be a godslayer, it will forever be impossible for most fans to still not see him as Batman.

It’s now been over a decade since Bale last had the infamous cowl on, and he remains a fan favorite. Even after Ben Affleck’s turn as the hero, Bale stands as the quintessential Dark Knight for lots of people out there.

With the actor now in the spotlight again, many might be wondering what he thought of Robert Pattinson’s portrayal of the Caped Crusader in this year’s The Batman. Sadly, it seems he hasn’t yet seen it—though, according to the actor himself, despite his given reasoning, he will watch it… eventually.

Christian Bale Hasn’t Seen The Batman Yet

At the red carpet premiere for Thor: Love and Thunder, Variety asked Christian Bale what he thought of Robert Pattinson’s The Batman. Surprisingly, the actor revealed how he “still [hasn’t] seen it,” but that he “will see it” and “[he] hear[s] wonderful things.”

The actor’s reasoning behind not having seen it yet is that “[he] like[s] to really savor films, and [he doesn’t] want to watch too many:”

“I still haven’t seen it. I will see it. Listen mate, I—it’s amazing how few films I see. Every director I work with, I’ve seen a couple of their films, and they’re always looking at me going, ‘Are you kidding?’ I like to really savor films, and I don’t want to watch too many. But I will, I certainly will. Robert [Pattinson] is an absolutely wonderful actor. We bumped into each other, talked a little bit about it ahead of time, and I hear wonderful things.”

Bale Should Probably Watch Pattinson

In recent years, there seems to be a trend that when an actor leaves an iconic role, they also tend to put that character, or franchise, in the rearview mirror. For example, based on recent interviews, Chris Evans hasn’t been keeping up with the MCU—he hasn’t even seen his fictional wife pick up her British vibranium shield.

Though, that pattern isn’t always absolute. The three Spider-Men seemed pretty familiar with each other’s work when glimpsed in behind-the-scenes footage or press coverage of Spider-Man: No Way Home.

There is bound to be more than one Batman fan out there who will be disappointed to learn of Bale’s ignorance of The Batman. Hopefully, he makes good on his word and does end up watching the former Twilight actor bring to life and expand the Caped Crusader’s legacy.

According to a writer for The Dark Knight, the recent reboot was a “rewarding” experience, and he particularly enjoyed the “internal observations” that offered a new perspective for Bruce Wayne. Maybe if he reached out to Bale, it’d jump a little higher on his watchlist.

Bale should probably consider catching up soon. Before he knows it, he’ll be really behind, since not only will there be a Penguin spin-off series, but The Batman will also be receiving an Arkham Asylum show; the clock is ticking.

The Batman is now streaming on HBO Max.