When it comes to crowning the greatest comic book movie ever made, Christopher Nolan’s Batman Begins is almost always in the conversation, as it should be. Not only is it one of the genre’s finest efforts, but it’s also among the most influential blockbusters of the 21st Century.
You can easily pinpoint the effect that it had on Hollywood following its arrival based entirely on the number of dark and gritty reboots that released in its wake. Indeed, a whole lot of recognizable and long dormant properties tried to tell a grounded origin story and it’d be safe to say that many of them failed to emulate the success of Nolan’s pic.
Most people probably aren’t aware of all the interesting behind the scenes stories from production on Batman Begins, though, and as with a good number of major Hollywood blockbusters, there are numerous intriguing tidbits about the making of the film. Including the fact that star Christian Bale actually fell asleep while shooting one of the scenes.
If you’ll recall, the actor has a scene with Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman where he wakes up in bed to find them waiting there for him. As it turns out, though, he actually fell asleep in this moment, only for Caine to poke him in the ribs to get him up.
“In the scene, I was meant to be waking up, so I laid down and just fell asleep,” said Bale. And I didn’t hear ‘action.’ So, Michael and Morgan were talking, and I was supposed to join in. I woke up with Michael Caine poking me in the ribs and going, ‘Look at that! He’s bloody fallen asleep, hasn’t he? He’s bloody fallen asleep!’
Of course, Bale is known for his extreme dedication to getting into character, but it’s safe to say that this was unintentional on his part. Though it is a funny story to look back on and only makes Batman Begins and everything it has to offer that much more special. Indeed, even after so many years following its release, it’s still on a level that very few comic book movies have managed to reach.