8 Little Known Sacrifices Christian Bale Made To Make Nolan’s Batman Awesome

4. He Risked The Whole Role With An Out-There Audition

If you€™'re in the running to play one of the biggest superheroes of all time, most people would try their hardest to appease the director, playing to what they seem to want. You, however, are not Christian Bale.

All previous Batmans (even the heavily praised Michael Keaton, whose casting caused Batfleck-level controversy among fans) felt like an act put on by Wayne. So when Bale took played with the question of which side is the real mask while also addressing a major hole in the character (why haven't people notice Batman and Bruce Wayne have the same voice) and delivered a then-extreme take that led to him severely doubting his chances afterwards.

Risk taking isn€™'t a bad idea to make you stand out from the crowd, but when Bale went for Bruce Wayne he made big, character shaping decisions without ever discussing them with the casting crew. However, the risk paid off. What would have been over-the-top normally felt just right within the suit and played into Nolan's plans. Although that voice would go on to be an issue of its own.