I am one of those who defend the idea that the hyperconnected world The one we live in is not so different from that of about three decades ago, when the internet was beginning to take its first hits and 56k modems made a horrifying noise every time we tried to connect. The bases that move it remain the same, but its inhabitants have an ideal tool to make more noise than ever.
The mask problem
A good example of this, if we stick to the world of film adaptations and big franchises, is the theme of the choices of performers to bring iconic characters from the world of comics to life on the big screen. We are used to absurd campaigns on Change.org asking a production company to rectify a signing, but the fandom enraged by a “bad casting” goes back long before Heath Ledger’s Joker and the protest at the click of a button.
If we go back to the late ’80s, the superhero elephant in the room was none other than Tim Burton’s ‘Batman’. When the people of Warner began looking for their new Caped Crusader, the list of names that chose to wear the mantle of the bat included celebrities such as Mel Gibson, Pierce Brosnan or a Bill Murray who had just turned Hollywood upside down with his work on ‘Ghostbusters’.
Finally, it was producer Jon Peters who put an end to the search when he suggested to Burton the name of Michael Keaton, who became the main choice for the director and that, after his affirmative answer, he ended up becoming the Batman of Gotham. A decision that greatly pissed off the “fans” of the DC character, who soon let the studio know.
Warner Bros. mailboxes were overflowed by more than 50,000 letters from offended peoplethe fandom protested at conventions tearing up promotional material for the film… Who was Keaton, a comedy actor with few memorable credits beyond ‘Bitelchus’, to take on Jack Nicholson on screen and play Bruce Wayne himself in a feature film?
The situation, which even caused the company’s shares to drop, caused Tim Burton was open to testing more actors, but an idea continued to haunt his head. That’s how he tells it in his book ‘Burton on Burton’.
“In my mind I kept reading reviews that said, ‘Jack is great, but the unknown as Batman is nothing special.’ I saw a million characters and the only thing that kept going through my head when I saw those heroes of action-adventure coming to my office was, ‘I can’t see them wearing a batsuit. I can’t.’ Would you dress up as a bat, for God’s sake?'”
“A bat is a wild thing. I had worked with Michael before so I thought it would be perfect, because he has that look in his eyes. He’s in ‘Bitelchus.’ he needs, because he’s not this gigantic macho-man. It’s all about the transformation. Then it all started to make sense. Suddenly, everything clicked. I could see the pointy ears, the image and the psychology made sense. Talking to Michael and making him Batman just underscored the whole split personality thing, which is really what the movie is about.”
Finally, Keaton ended up making a real display of charisma and good work wearing the hood of the Gotham vigilante, turning his version of Batman into a pop icon that, in addition to closing a few mouths that got hot before their time, has transcended to our days. days; as in 2022 and 2023 we will be able to enjoy his talent as a superhero again in ‘Batgirl’ and ‘The Flash’. Time puts everything in its place, or so they say.