Taking a slight turn from directing drama movies, when Christopher Nolan dived into the superhero genre with DC, he created something majestic. Starting his journey with Batman Begins, the acclaimed filmmaker went on to create the epic The Dark Knight trilogy featuring Christian Bale.
But surprisingly, the movie was also supposed to feature Leonardo DiCaprio as per the demands of Warner Bros. It’s quite shocking to see DiCaprio’s name pop up in a superhero flick, and probably that’s why, even Christopher Nolan refused to feature the A-lister. And certainly, fans are quite glad about Nolan’s decision.
Warner Bros Wanted To Feature Leonardo DiCaprio As The Riddler
When Christopher Nolan entered the new era of Gotham’s Caped Crusader with Batman Begins, the filmmaker created a timeless masterpiece, which was then followed by The Dark Knight trilogy. However, witnessing the massive success of the first movie featuring Christian Bale, Warner Bros simply wanted to experiment with the trilogy.
Trying to surround the story around a villain, instead of the main hero, WB bosses wanted to include a new character, The Riddler. Apart from Liam Neeson’s Ra’s al Ghul, and Heath Ledger’s Joker, Warner Bros also wanted to introduce The Riddler as a memorable villain in The Dark Knight Rises. However, according to David S. Goyer, who spoke on the Happy, Sad, Confused podcast, Nolan was completely against it.
“I remember after the premiere of The Dark Knight, the head of Warner Bros. saying, ‘Oh, you gotta do The Riddler. Leo as The Riddler!’ Saying to me, ‘You gotta tell Chris, Leo as The Riddler.’ And I just had to say, ‘Dude, that’s not the way we work.’”
Trying to convince Christopher Nolan to use The Riddler as the main antagonist in The Dark Knight Rises, WB bosses pitched Leonardo DiCaprio for the role. However, none of their desires came to fruition, as Nolan was staunchly against it. Thus, eventually, the film featured Tom Hardy’s Bane as the main antagonist.
Fans Are Glad Christopher Nolan Didn’t Agree With Warner Bros
Over the years, Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight movies have served a huge audience base and have always been highly appreciated by modern fans. And certainly so, Nolan’s DC movies have been a timeless work of art, given the perfect casting, epic storytelling, and brilliant filmmaking.
However, after decades since Nolan’s Batman movies were released, fans are certainly happy about one aspect – the casting part. Rejoicing on social media, netizens are quite happy about the fact that the filmmakers went against Warner Bros.’ desire to cast Leonardo DiCaprio as The Riddler.
I don't think DiCaprio would do a comic book movie. It's kind of beneath him as an actor. And especially now. The genre has tanked. (Thankfully).
— Carbon Copy Man (@C6CopyMan) September 23, 2023
Doesnt seem like Leos type of thing.
— Lucky (@LuckyCordle) September 23, 2023
Terrible choice for the role regardless.
— Marc (@MarAbh999) September 23, 2023
Christopher Nolan > wb execs
— 😝 (@AnthonyGelman) September 23, 2023
Oh hell no wtf, so glad that didn't happen
— ghosty (@AbnerKrill666) September 23, 2023
Although watching Leonardo DiCaprio being a part of DC would have been quite exciting, fans are certainly not sure if The Riddler would have matched the storyline of The Dark Knight Rises.
Watch The Dark Knight trilogy on Max.
Source: Josh Horowitz, X
