Darren Aronofsky: Batman Film Failed Because I Wanted Joaquin Phoenix as Batman, But the WB Wanted Freddie Prinze Jr.

It feels like yesterday that Joel Schumacher’s bomb-tastic “Batman and Robin” showcased a Batman suit with hard nipples and Ah-Nuld’s thick Austrian accent as Mr. Freeze. It was campy stuff, but then came Christopher Nolan to the rescue with 2005’s “Batman Begins,” and the rest, as they say, is history.

However, people tend to forget that Warner Bros. originally wanted Darren Aronofsky to helm the Caped Crusader reboot. Aronofsky, much like Nolan, had come off two critically-acclaimed indies (“Requiem for a Dream,” and “Pi”). Eventually, Aronofsky’s vision for the film was too crazy for the studio and they ended up firing him.

Speaking to Empire, Aronofsky finally gave us details of his recalled Batman movie and why the WB parted ways with him in 2003.

“The studio wanted Freddie Prinze Jr and I wanted Joaquin Phoenix,” he explained. “I remember thinking, ‘Uh oh, we’re making two different films here.’ That’s a true story. It was a different time. The ‘Batman’ I wrote was definitely a way different type of take than they ended up making.”

Of note, Phoenix, back in the day this Aronofsky/Batman project was being developed, was not the same person/actor he is today. He was a little more composed and subtle as an actor, think “Gladiator,” before his eventual mental breakdown in the early aughts turned him into vulnerable, unpredictable, but brilliant on-screen performer. So, it isn’t hard to see the Phoenix of “Gladiator” tackling a focused and composed role such as Bruce Wayne back in 2003/2004 but it’s nearly impossible to even think today’s Joaquin would be a good match.

Aronofsky also wanted to team-up with famous graphic novelist Frank Miller, who is best-known for penning “The Dark Knight Returns” graphic novels:

“It was an amazing thing because I was a big fan of his graphic novel work, so just getting to meet him was exciting back then,” the director said. “The Batman that was out before me was ‘Batman & Robin,’ the famous one with the nipples on the Batsuit, so I was really trying to undermine that, and reinvent it. That’s where my head went.”

Alas, we’ll never really know what Aronofsky was looking to do since he was fired soon after. He went on to instead direct “The Wrestler,” and “Black Swan,” whereas Nolan gave us that iconic Batman trilogy. So, it turned out to be a win-win for cinephiles.