Heath Ledger Wanted Christian Bale To Hit Him For Real During Batman Filming

Heath Ledger was, without question, the best Joker of all time. His commitment to the role was unreal, and it's now been revealed that he was so set on getting the perfect take he actually wanted his co-star Christian Bale to hit him during the interrogation scene in The Dark Knight.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, new book - 100 Things Batman Fans Should Know Before They Die - by Joseph McCabe, contains an interview between McCabe and Bale.

In which Bale said: "As you see in the movie, Batman starts beating the Joker and realises that this is not your ordinary foe.

Credit: Warner Bros

"Because the more I beat him, the more he enjoys it. The more I'm giving him satisfaction. Heath was behaving in a very similar fashion.

"He was kinda egging me on. I was saying, 'You know what? I really don't need to actually hit you. It's going to look just as good if I don't'.

"And he's going, 'Go on. Go on. Go on...' He was slamming himself around, and there were tiled walls inside of that set which were cracked and dented from him hurling himself into them. His commitment was total."

Ledger's commitment to the role of the Joker was unbelievable. Credit: Warner Bros

Opening up about what it was like working with the late actor, Bale said: "Our first scene was in an interrogation room together, and I saw that he's a helluva actor who's completely committed to it and totally gets the tone that Chris [Nolan] is trying to create with this.

"We're not going for actors revealing their enjoyment of playing a wacky caricature. We're treating this as serious drama. You go into character and you stay in the character. I love that. I find that so ridiculous that I love it, and I take that very seriously.

Credit: Warner Bros

"Heath was definitely embracing that. When he was in the makeup and the garb he was in character the whole time; and when he took it off he was absolutely fantastic company to be around."

Tragically, Ledger died, aged just 28, six months before The Dark Knight was released, so he never got to see what a massive impact his incarnation of the supervillain would have on fans.

He was posthumously award the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his role as the Joker - very well deserved.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Featured Image Credit: Warner Bros Pictures

Topics: TV and Film, Christian Bale, US Entertainment, The Joker, Batman

Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

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