Cillian Murphy has spoken about the time he had a screen test to play the lead role in Batman Begins.
In 2003, Murphy was a finalist to play Batman/Bruce Wayne in Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy, even donning the batsuit to screen-test opposite Amy Adams. The role eventually went to Christian Bale, while Murphy instead took on the role of villain Scarecrow.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter in a new interview, in which Murphy also discussed A Quite Place Part II, Peaky Blinders and more, the actor played down suggestions that it was a closely fought battle for the role.
“I don’t believe I was close to landing that role,” he said. “The only actor who was right for that part at that time, in my estimation, was Christian Bale, and he absolutely smashed it.
“So, for me, it was just an experience, and then it turned into something else. It turned into that character, Scarecrow, and it turned into a working relationship with Chris. So I think back very, very fondly on that time, but I never, ever, ever considered myself Bruce Wayne material.”
Murphy also praised Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight as “one of the greatest writers working today,” adding: “By the time we finish this series, he’ll have written 36 hours of television on his own, and I don’t know if anybody else has done that in this new age of TV.”
In October last year, Murphy revealed that his teenage band, The Sons of Mr. Green Genes, were once offered a record deal.
The Peaky Blinders and 28 Days Later… star was speaking to BBC Radio 6 Music’s Steve Lamacq ahead of the launch of his own new series on the station, Cillian Murphy’s Limited Edition.
During the interview, Lamacq asked Murphy about his musical background and the fortunes of The Sons of Mr. Green Genes, who were named after a Frank Zappa song from his 1969 album ‘Hot Rats’.
The post Cillian Murphy reflects on auditioning to play Batman in 2003 appeared first on NME.
