10 Creepy Similarities Between Nolan And Burton’s Batman Movies
5. An Actor Left Before Their Role Got Meaty
Although each film in The Dark Knight Trilogy has their own feel, Batman Begins feels the most distinct. With so much of the action taking place in the narrows, its more akin to Burtons smoggy city than the Chicago/New York/Detriot of the later films is. Rather than clashing, this only acts as a further showcase of the effect Batman has on the city, gradually having Gotham free of the crime that made it so oppressively distinct. Not all differences between the films can be as contextualised as that. Viewed by many as the weakest link in Batman Begins, no one really mourned the loss of Katie Holmes as Rachel Dawes, but it does create a strange discontinuity. Replaced with Maggie Gyllenhaal, her chemistry with Christian Bale was more than just being able to reference flashbacks and ultimately improved The Dark Knight's death shocker no end. Burtons films likewise had a cast member set for explosive things who instead simply left. Billy Dee Williams spent much of Batman in the peripheries as Harvey Dent (and didnt even appear in Batman Returns), but was contractually promised a stab at Two-Face once the opportunity arose. Like Holmes, things didn't end up as planned, with less happy results. Williams contract was paid off and he was replaced by Tommy Lee Jones, who Joker-ed up the bipolar D.A to widespread derision.
