“I’ve always wanted to work with him”: Christopher Nolan Changed His Opinion on Robert Downey Jr. After Rejecting Him for a Batman Role
In an alternate dimension, Robert Downey Jr. could have played Scarecrow in Batman Begins, while Cillian Murphy could have been Iron Man. This would certainly make for an interesting What If…? episode. While Downey Jr. eyed the role of Scarecrow in Christopher Nolan’s Batman movie, the director couldn’t see the actor fit the role as we envisioned it. The news of Downey’s rejection spread like wildfire only for Nolan to work with him in his stellar blockbuster Oppenheimer.
Also Read: What Christopher Nolan Said After Oppenheimer Couldn’t Break $1 Billion Ceiling
Robert Downey Jr. Wanted to Play Scarecrow
In the early 2000s, Robert Downey Jr. was not as big a star as he is today. After being familiar with Christopher Nolan’s work, he wished to be a part of Batman Begins which was set to release in 2005. Nolan wanted to feature the Scarecrow as the main antagonist in the movie, a role that Downey thought he was made for. However, Nolan disagreed as he couldn’t see him fit the role in the way he wanted to emulate on screen. While attending the screening of Oppenheimer at the American Cinematheque, Downey shared,
“I’m pretty sure I heard about [this role] and I was like, ‘I’m Scarecrow.’ And then I remember meeting [Nolan] for tea and I was like, ‘He doesn’t seem like he’s really in on this interview.’ And he was polite and all that. But you can tell when someone is kind of like, ‘It’s not going to go anywhere.’”
RDJ dropping BOMBS at the @am_cinematheque conversation. He apparently met w/Nolan for SCARECROW for Batman Begins only to be beat out by Cillian Murphy. Woah! #Oppenheimer pic.twitter.com/zBE9tts47E
— Griffin Schiller (@griffschiller) February 4, 2024
Ultimately, Cillian Murphy was cast as Scarecrow and thus began the six-movie-long collaboration between Nolan and the actor. Moreover, Murphy originally auditioned for the lead role of Batman which eventually went to Christian Bale. Likewise, years later, Downey Jr. was cast in a supporting role in Oppenheimer, which has now become one of Nolan’s highest-grossing movies, whereas Murphy led the movie as the titular character. Both Murphy and Downey Jr. have been nominated for Oscars this year in the Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor categories respectively.
Christopher Nolan on Casting Robert Downey Jr. in Oppenheimer
On The Late Show hosted by Stephen Colbert, Nolan expressed how he was drawn to Downey Jr. and his charisma as an actor. Nolan is not new to the genre of comic books being made into movies for the big screen and understands how a character should be played by an actor who understands every unique facet of the role. He went on to claim that casting Downey Jr. as Iron Man was a very important casting decision that eventually shaped the MCU. Nolan said,
“With anybody you work with, with actors…you’re looking for some kind of connection emotionally, empathetically. You’re looking for some kind of generosity. He has this incredible generosity of spirit. It means when he’s in a scene with other people he’s making sure they are all doing their best, that they are all able to bring their best to the table. He’s helping them clarify those emotional connections. I’ve always wanted to work with him. I’ve always seen that in his work. And he has such charisma as Tony Stark. Him playing Iron Man is one of the most consequential casting decisions that’s ever been made in the history of the movie business. I wanted to give him the opportunity to lose himself in a part, lose himself in another human being the way great actors love him.”
At the same time, both Nolan and Downey Jr. knew how difficult it would be for the latter to let go of his Tony Stark eccentricities and adopt a different perspective to perfectly play the part. Downey Jr. expressed the concerns he had while letting go of a part he played for 11 years and molding himself into another human being to align with Nolan’s expectations.
