George Clooney’s Son Gives Batman & Robin a Thumbs Up
George Clooney’s son recently watched Batman & Robin for the first time, surprising the actor with his positive reaction to the infamous film. Clooney reflects on the film’s impact and its role in shaping his career.
Like it or not, Batman & Robin from 1997 is stitched into George Clooney’s film history. The Joel Schumacher-directed blockbuster, notorious for its over-the-top style and infamous Batsuit, saw Clooney don the cape and cowl, facing off against a colourful line-up of Gotham’s villains: Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy, Arnold Schwarzenegger as Mr Freeze, and Robert Swenson as Bane. The film copped a hammering from critics and punters alike, and it’s still widely panned as one of the dodgiest superhero flicks of the modern era.
Despite its reputation, Clooney knew the day would come when he’d have to show his kids the film. His eight-year-old son Alexander is mad for Batman, so the timing felt right. While chatting to W magazine during promo for his Netflix project Jay Kelly, Clooney shared how it all unfolded.
‘Halloween’s a big holiday. My son went as Batman. He hadn’t seen Batman yet. I always say to him, “You know I was Batman.” He’s always like, “No.” I don’t know that he knew how profound it was when he said I wasn’t Batman.
He went on,
A couple of weeks ago, I finally showed it to him. It wasn’t great for grown-ups, but it’s great for eight-year-olds, so he loved it. My daughter, meanwhile, went as a witch. She doesn’t like all the princess stuff. She likes to be the evil witch.
Cast Reactions and On-Set Stories
Clooney’s home screening comes not long after his Batman & Robin co-stars Chris O’Donnell (Robin) and Alicia Silverstone (Batgirl) reflected on the film’s legacy. O’Donnell summed up the experience,
‘It is what it is. Some work out and some don’t. All of a sudden, you were starting to get the feedback, and you realise it was just going sideways. There was so much hatred of the film when it came out. It was like, “Oh my God.” And you want to do your job and promote the film... I remember at one point [director] Joel Schumacher just threw up the flag. He’s like, “I’m out. I can’t do it anymore.” He was so heartbroken and kind of bummed out about it.’
Silverstone, who shot to fame after her Aerosmith video appearances, recalled the chaos of filming:
‘I remember a lot of things not making sense. We would be in a big warehouse and there was so many extras and so much going on.... [Clooney] really was like a big brother in those circumstances. So cool. He stood up for me and was reasonable when things were not. And to get the outfit on took so much time and energy. And once you had it on, you couldn’t go to the bathroom for ages. These were not easy costumes. You had to put baby powder all over your body to get it on. The whole thing was a big production.’
How Batman & Robin Changed Clooney’s Path
For Clooney, the fallout from Batman & Robin ended up being a turning point. When he was honoured with an AFI Lifetime Achievement Award, he was asked which film had the biggest impact on his career. He didn’t hesitate:
‘It’s really easy to pick: Batman & Robin. That’s not a joke. Up until that moment, I was an actor only concerned with finding work. After the failure of that film creatively, I understood that I needed to take control of the films I made, not just the role. My next three films were Out of Sight, Three Kings, and O Brother, Where Art Thou?’