Rachel McAdams was at the pinnacle of her career in 2006. She had starred in a number of successful films, including Mean Girls, The Notebook, and Wedding Crashers, and she had achieved levels of success that most actors could only hope to achieve. Her next step? She returned to Canada and took some time off from the spotlight, largely avoiding the media for two years. But doing so came at a high price.
If you are a fan of Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy, which introduced Batman to the world in a decidedly gritty way, you might have noticed a significant difference between the first and second movies. Katie Holmes was replaced by Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel Dawes in The Dark Knight (2008).
We saw Holmes as Rachel Dawes in Batman Begins (2005) as Bruce Wayne/Batman’s childhood sweetheart and best friend (played by Christian Bale). But because the actress declined to reprise her role in a 2008 superhero movie, Nolan was forced to find a replacement.
And prior to choosing Maggie Gyllenhaal, he reportedly considered casting Rachel McAdams.
Rachel McAdams Took A Break From Acting?
At the height of her career in 2006, Rachel McAdams decided to take a two-year break after appearing in a number of blockbusters, such as The Notebook, Wedding Crashers, and Mean Girls. She took a break from the industry from 2006 to 2007.
McAdams spoke candidly about deciding to leave her successful career in the middle of a winning streak during an interview with Bustle, and her words proved the importance of knowing when to say ‘no’.
“I guess I always had a sense that it would be OK; either it’s going to work out or it’s not.”
She went back to Canada so that she could spend more time with her family. She acknowledged that putting her career on hold “really helped [her] feel empowered” because:
“It helped me feel like I was taking back some control. And I think it sort of allowed me to come in from a different doorway.”
McAdams gained popularity quickly after playing Regina George in Mean Girls. In a Bustle interview, she acknowledged that her ascent to the A-list happened “overnight”.
Even though the actress acknowledged that the pressure of the time “was not quite jiving with my personality and what I needed to stay sane”, she admitted to having felt “guilty for not capitalizing on the opportunity that I was being given” back in the 2000s. She made her mental health a priority as a result:
“You don’t go to theater school to learn about how to deal with that. There’s no book on how to navigate that.”
Rachel McAdams Was Almost In Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight
Finding a replacement to play Rachel Dawes has begun, as it has been confirmed that Katie Holmes will not be returning for Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins sequel, The Dark Knight. The first name that kept coming up in connection with the role was Rachel McAdams.
Well, this was not the first time as she has been linked to several superhero girlfriend roles in the past.
She was reportedly set to play the lead (Pepper Pots) opposite Robert Downey Jr. in Iron Man. The Notebook actress declined because she wanted to prioritize spending time with her family in Canada. When it came to taking on the MCU blockbuster franchise, McAdams admitted that her health was not in the best condition.
“There were definitely some anxious moments of wondering if I was just throwing it all away, and why was I doing that? It’s taken years to understand what I intuitively was doing.”
Also, Isla Fisher and Emily Blunt were reportedly considered by Christopher Nolan before deciding on Maggie Gyllenhaal.
You can watch The Dark Knight, which is available to stream on Max.
Source- Bustle
