8 Actor Recasts That Completely Changed Everything

7. Rachel Dawes - The Dark Knight

In The Dark Knight Trilogy, Rachel Dawes is Bruce Wayne's close childhood friend and long-time love interest, playing an integral role in the development of Bruce Wayne as a person and his relationship with his Batman persona, to the point where her death death triggers much of the action of the final film. All the more reason, then, to get Rachel right. If she isn't believable, how can Batman's motivations be?

Rachel was originally played by Katie Holmes in 2005's Batman Begins, but the actress chose not to return to the franchise, apparently due to scheduling conflicts (she later appeared in the critically panned 2008 comedy Mad Money, although rumours circulated that Tom Cruise wasn't pleased with the romantic scenes she shared with Christian Bale). While many were critical of Holmes' portrayal of the character, even more criticism was levelled at Maggie Gyllenhaal for putting in a bland performance and seeming out place in the franchise. As a result, Rachel's death in The Dark Knight is completely unemotional. This could have been avoided had there been actual continuity between the characters in both films. As it stands, Adams' Rachel and Gyllenhaal's seem like completely distinct people.