Over the last decades many actors have played Bruce Wayne/Batman on a movie screen. One of the most controversial was George Clooney and his 1997 ‘Batman and Robin’. The film received numerous criticisms and he is not exactly one of the most remembered performers in the role of the man-bat. However, this year he was seen again in ‘Flash’ and rumors of a possible return to the superhero costume began.
Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, the American actor has clarified that he does not want to re-sheathe the suit as Batman and has done so, moreover, with some very strong words.
“The chances of returning to be Batman are slim, none,” said Clooney, who added: “I don’t think there are enough drugs in the world to return”.
When questioned about these statements and why he did agree to return in ‘Flash’ for a small cameo, Clooney jokes, “There was a lot of clamor for me to come back as Batman, as you well know. There was a clamor.” However, Clooney‘s presence is barely testimonial as Bruce Wayne.
George Clooney doesn’t have fond memories of ‘Batman and Robin
His animosity to the character is such that, in another interview to Variety in the past, he already made it clear that ‘Batman and Robin’, directed by Joel Schumacher, is not among his favorite tapes. “It was a difficult movie to do well in. In retrospect, it’s easy to look back and say, ‘Woah, it was really shitty and I was really bad in it,” he said.
“‘Batman and Robin’ was so bad that it destroyed the superhero franchise,” he maintained in 2021 about the film, and in fact went so far as to make jokes about preventing loved ones, such as his wife, from seeing his involvement in the film, “I want her to respect me.”