Jake Gyllenhaal Was Almost ‘Batman’ For Director Christopher Nolan

Screenwriter David S. Goyer dropped some insider information on a new episode of the Happy Sad Confused podcast.

Goyer revealed that he vouched for Jake Gyllenhaal as the actor to play Batman in Christopher Nolan’s 2005 film, Batman Begins. The role ultimately went to Christian Bale, who kept the role for three films.

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“We would chat about all sorts of things. There were a number of people who had screen-tested, and I had advocated for Gyllenhaal,” said Goyer. “I mean, Gyllenhaal is amazing, Christian Bale is amazing, so who knows what.”

He added, “I believe there is” when asked if there is footage somewhere of Gyllenhaal auditioning in a Batman costume.

One other tidbit: Goyer said that an unnamed executive from Warner Bros. wanted Leonardo DiCaprio to play The Riddlerfor the sequel, The Dark Knight. But Goyer said, “That’s not the way we work.” The films were made around themes, not villains.

The 2008 Dark Knight starred the late Heath Ledger (Gyllenhaal’s Brokeback Mountain costar) as the Joker, He won a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.

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