Follow us on Google News
Get the latest updates directly in your Google News feed
Over the past few years, talented British actors have started portraying superhero characters, and some of them have also become fan favorites. Both Marvel and DC followed the trend, but Gary Oldman believes that Christopher Nolan is the one who laid the foundation for such casting with his 2005 filmBatman Begins. The action fantasy film was the first film in Nolan’sThe Dark Knighttrilogy, which introduced Christian Bale as the Gotham Knight.
Oldman portrayed James Gordon, one of Batman’s closest friends, in the 2005 film. During his interview with Dan of Geek, the actor-filmmaker shared his thoughts about the increasing trend of casting British actors as popular superheroes.
Read More:Christian Bale Was Against Christopher Nolan’s Batman Having a British Accent: “Batman is such an American character”
Gary Oldman Believes Christopher Nolan’s Approach Brought Change
Followed by Christian Bale’s Batman, many filmmakers and studios started casting British actors to portray America-based Superheroes. Some of them have even become fan favorites, including Henry Cavill’s Superman and Tom Holland’s Spider-Man.
Other British actors who have joined the popular superhero franchises include Charlie Cox, Benedict Cumberbatch, and Andrew Garfield. According to Gary Oldman, the constant casting of British actors for superhero roles is the result of a trend that was started by Christopher Nolan.
During a 2014 interview, he shared,“I think what happens is a trend.”The Darkest Hourstar claimed that Nolan castThe Machiniststar after his audition and several tests. Oldman also mentioned that the trend to cast British actors in superhero roles originated from the casting of the 2005 film.
“And that caused a whole trend, like dominoes. I think it takes one person with an imagination like Nolan,”he said. He also mentioned how it becomes a new thing, and everyone starts following it.“And it’s so blinkered that they go, ‘Oh yeah, now it’s this,’ and off they go,”Oldman said.
Read More:“He shook me and screamed at me!”: Harry Potter Star Daniel Radcliffe Could Not Handle Gary Oldman’s Intensity During Extreme Scenes in the Movie
Gary Oldman Was Offered to be the Villain inBatman Begins
During his interview, Oldman also talked about being typecast. While the 65 years old actor is known for portraying a variety of characters, he is popularly known for his villain portrayals. Gary Oldman has played some of the most memorable villains of all time, ranging from Zorg inThe Fifth Elementto Drexl inTrue Romance.
During his interview, he shared that most of the time he was typecast as a villain and he did not want to continue like that.“I got typecast as a villain, the bad guy, and I wanted to turn that around,”he said. TheHannibalactor shared that despite being typecast, he continued looking for different roles.
While he did manage to land different roles, Oldman also claimed that it also depended on“the imagination of who’s casting you.”He shared that theBatman Beginsdirector first came to him with a villain’s [Scarecrow] role. However, he denied the offer, saying,“I don’t want to play the villain.”
Later, he asked the director if he could portray Commissioner Gordon in the film. After giving some thought to his offer, Nolan cast him as James Gordan in the 2005 film. He reprised his role inThe Dark KnightandThe Dark Knight Rises.
The Dark Knighttrilogy is available to stream on HBO Max.
Read More:“He immediately embraced him”: Harry Potter Star Gary Oldman Calmed Freaked Out Daniel Radcliffe When He Was 14 While Shooting Prisoner of Azkaban, Treated Him Like a Real Actor to Make Him Feel Worthy
Source:Den of Geek
Laxmi Rajput
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3448
Laxmi Rajput is a Senior Writer at FandomWire, with over 3,300 articles published covering film, TV, and pop culture. With a degree in Broadcast Journalism and over three years of experience in content writing, she pivoted to entertainment journalism because let’s be honest, superheroes, sitcoms, and Netflix binges are way more fun. Laxmi frequently covers Marvel, Harry Potter, Star Wars, and popular TV shows, offering both fan-first enthusiasm and thoughtful analysis. Her work often dives into Marvel theories, revisits the genius of The Big Bang Theory, or unpacks the Netflix phenomenon of Stranger Things.
