Latest news with #Batsuit
The Guardian
18-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘No thought given to the human being': Ben Affleck says he hated his ‘horrendous' Batman suit
Ben Affleck says that he 'hated' the Batsuit, and that it was 'horrendous to wear' and 'made it difficult to make the movie'. Speaking to GQ, Affleck said that the main issue with the elaborate costume was the heat it generated. 'They don't breathe. They're made to look the way they want them to look. There's no thought put into the human being. So what happens is that you just start sweating … So in that thing, you'd just be pouring water, because you have that cowl over it. Like, there's one thing to wear the suit, but once you cover your head, I guess that's where all your heat kind of escapes and you feel it.' Affleck said that even highly trained stunt performers found it difficult to wear the suit for long periods. 'They could do that for about like 45, 50 minutes and then they're like gonna get heatstroke. So you had to come out of it.' He added: 'It just made it difficult to make the movie, because you're so hot. It also does not make you feel very heroic, because you're instantly exhausted and really sweaty.' Affleck played Batman in two features directed by Zack Snyder: Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2016 and Justice League in 2017 (with the latter re-edited and released in 2021 as Zack Snyder's Justice League), as well as cameos in Suicide Squad and The Flash. Affleck was originally attached to star in, direct and co-write subsequent standalone film The Batman, but was ultimately replaced in the role by Robert Pattinson after the disappointing commercial performance of Batman v Superman and Justice League. Affleck's Batsuit, designed by Oscar-nominated costume designer Michael Wilkinson and built by Jose Fernandez and Ironhead Studio, was reportedly made from multiple layers of Lycra and foam, taking Affleck around 25 minutes to get into it, with up to six costume assistants helping. In 2015, Wilkinson described the cowl as 'incredible engineering', saying that previous Batsuits had not allowed actors to turn their heads, and that the costume as designed was 'comfortable and very flexible' and allow Affleck to perform in 'a very natural and forceful way'. Affleck's Batsuit is not the first to attract criticism, with the 'nipple suit' George Clooney wore for Batman & Robin in 1997 often cited as one of the reasons for the film's poor performance.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Actor Val Kilmer, star of 'Batman Forever' and 'The Doors,' dies at 65
Val Kilmer, the star of '80s and '90s blockbusters including "Top Gun," "Batman Forever" and "Tombstone," has died, according to The Associated Press. He was 65. The actor's daughter, Mercedes Kilmer, confirmed the death, saying he died Tuesday in Los Angeles, the AP reported. Kilmer was diagnosed with throat cancer in 2015 and underwent a tracheotomy, which made talking difficult for the actor. "It's just like any other language or dialect," Kilmer told "Good Morning America" in August 2020 about his difficulties communicating after his tracheotomy. "You have to figure out a way to communicate that's no different than any other acting challenge, but it's just a very unique set of circumstances." Kilmer, a graduate of the Juilliard School's drama division, began his career as a theater actor in off-Broadway plays before finding Hollywood fame in the early 1980s with roles in the spy spoof "Top Secret!" and the teen comedy "Real Genius." Kilmer became a major star when he landed the role of Tom "Iceman" Kazansky in the 1986 aviator blockbuster "Top Gun," alongside Tom Cruise. The film made $344 million at the box office, becoming one of the highest-grossing movies of the decade. He followed the success of "Top Gun" with a string of well-received roles throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s: as dashing swordsman Madmartigan in Ron Howard's fantasy film "Willow;" as rock icon Jim Morrison in Oliver Stone's "The Doors;" and as gunslinger Doc Holliday in the western drama "Tombstone," alongside Kurt Russell. In 1995, Kilmer stepped into the role of the Caped Crusader, replacing Michael Keaton in Joel Schumacher's "Batman Forever." The film was a massive box-office success but Kilmer opted not to reprise the role for the next installment. In "Val," the 2021 documentary about his life, Kilmer said he found acting in the Batsuit limiting, saying, "Whatever boyhood excitement I had was crushed by the reality of the Batsuit ... Yes, every boy wants to be Batman. They actually want to be him ... not necessarily play him in a movie." Actor Val Kilmer, star of 'Batman Forever' and 'The Doors,' dies at 65 originally appeared on
The Independent
02-04-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Val Kilmer Forever: How the actor turned out to be a superhero in real life too
I thought Val Kilmer was a superhero from the first time I laid eyes on him. He was my first big-screen Batman, stirring some note of excitement in my soul that had remained untroubled by Adam West's shark-repellent-bat-spray-wielding TV version. I was nine years old when Batman Forever arrived in cinemas, which was probably exactly the right age to be awed by its schlocky, larger-than-life charms. There was Tommy Lee Jones, seething as the terrifying Two-Face, Jim Carrey stealing scenes as the demented Riddler, and, at the heart of it all, there was Val himself, a superhero who looked like a matinee idol. At least he did when you could see his face. As Kilmer once remarked to the Orlando Sentinel: 'Really, in that Batsuit, it wasn't so much about acting except with your nostrils.' At the time, it would never even have occurred to me that Kilmer – who died yesterday at the age of 65 – wasn't having the time of his life strutting around in black rubber and flaring his nostrils at Nicole Kidman. In Leo Scott and Ting Po's 2021 documentary Val, which was born out of thousands of hours of home video, Kilmer revealed that starring in Joel Schumacher's comic book romp left him feeling like little more than a tiny cog in a giant machine. He had always seen himself making high art – he went to Juilliard after all – and years earlier had turned up his nose at Top Gun 's 'silly script', before being contractually obliged to play Iceman. He had no such obligation with Batman, though, so he turned down reprising the role for Batman & Robin, passing the poisoned cape to George Clooney, and made The Saint instead. If, by some unlikely turn of events, I had been a child career adviser to Kilmer at this point, I'd have told him to make exactly that move. The Saint was even cooler than Batman. Based on a literary series by Leslie Charteris, The Saint had already been turned into a TV show in the Sixties starring Roger Moore, so naturally it was expected to provide Kilmer with his James Bond role. Here was a different type of superhero for him to embody: suave, sophisticated and with the top half of his face entirely unobscured. Things did not work out as planned. Kilmer's Simon Templar is apparently a master of disguise, but the outlandish costumes and not-great accents just don't really work in the context of a film trying to play things straight. (It didn't help that Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery came out in the same year, 1997, spoofing the sorts of films The Saint was indebted to and making it appear even more old-hat by comparison.) What had once been talked about as Kilmer's chance for his own globe-trotting franchise turned out to be his final appearance as a leading man. He would still do great work – notably in Shane Black's superb black comedy Kiss Kiss Bang Bang in 2005, wherein sparks fly whenever he verbally spars with co-star Robert Downey Jr – but some of his drive had clearly left him. Kilmer had built a reputation for being prepared to go further for a role than any other actor working. That reputation was waning. Several years ago, I spoke to Oliver Stone about casting Kilmer as Jim Morrison in 1991's The Doors. 'He chased me down,' Stone told me. 'He'd wanted to be in Platoon but he was impossible. During the auditions he was so out there. He was sort of eccentric. There are a lot of eccentric actors, but he was really out there. He did a strange audition for Elias [the character eventually played by Willem Dafoe]. He shot his own audition. He was lying on a table doing his kind of, you know, Jim Morrison imitation. It wasn't right at all for that movie, because he wasn't military. Then when The Doors happened, again he popped up in my life and he'd already prepared a tape.' Kilmer's portrayal of Morrison was one of the most remarkable performances of his career. Not only does he pull off looking like the Lizard King, he even sounds exactly like him – Stone estimated that of the Doors songs on the film's soundtrack, 40 per cent of the vocals are Morrison's while 60 per cent are Kilmer's. Stone also recalled that, true to his recalcitrant reputation, Kilmer proved difficult to work with. 'Of course Val, being of an extravagant mentality, would melodramatise his fatigue [from singing],' remembered Stone. 'That drove everyone a little bit crazy. He had so many massages. The massage bill on that film was enormous. $20,000, at least, in massages. For a big guy, and strong-looking, he wasn't that strong. He started looking tired.' By 2014, Kilmer's film career had taken a backseat to his fanboy-ish love of Mark Twain. While on tour with his one-man show, Citizen Twain, in Nashville, he found a huge lump in his throat. He could barely swallow. He was diagnosed with throat cancer and went through surgery, chemotherapy and radiation treatments. The cancer ravaged his vocal cords and stole his voice, leaving him speaking, breathing and eating through a tracheostomy tube. 'The sound is something between a squeak and a voiceless roar,' observed New York Times journalist Taffy Brodesser-Akner when she interviewed Kilmer in 2020. 'He says the fact that I can understand him is a result of the endless vocal exercises that he was trained to do when he went to Juilliard after high school, that he was taught to work his voice 'like it was a trumpet'.' It would have been easy for Kilmer to retreat from public view at that point; he had blockbuster money, after all. But he continued to work, both onscreen (including a small but profoundly moving part in 2021's Top Gun: Maverick) and off – maintaining HelMel, an art gallery and studio in Hollywood. He remained devoted to his dream of bringing his version of a Mark Twain biopic to the big screen, with Cinema Twain, a filmed version of his live show, being released in 2019. And then there was Val, a a precious piece of self-reflection, offering revealing and holistic insight into the man behind the celebrity. In his final years, Kilmer found a way to open up about his life, his victories and his defeats, despite cancer's cruel attempts to rob him of his voice. If that's not a superhero, I don't know what is.
Express Tribune
25-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Kai Cenat transforms stream into Wayne Manor with custom Batsuit for 'Batman Arkham' finale
Kai Cenat has taken his Batman Arkham marathon to new heights, revealing an extravagant Wayne Manor-inspired setup complete with a custom 3D-printed Batsuit. The streamer, known for his over-the-top live experiences, put months of preparation into designing a fully immersive Batman experience for his final stream in the series. Every Batcave featured in his marathon was custom-built, adding a cinematic touch to his already engaging gameplay. Fans couldn't believe the level of detail in Kai's setup, with the Wayne Manor living room recreated down to the finest elements. 'Kai really pulled up to Wayne Manor for his final Batman Arkham stream,' one viewer posted, capturing the excitement surrounding the event. KAI CENAT JUST REVEALED HIS LAST SETUP WHICH IS THE WAYNE MANOR'S LIVING ROOM WITH A NEW BATSUIT FOR HIS BATMAN ARKHAM SERIES MARATHON 😭🔥 — FearBuck (@FearedBuck) February 24, 2025 The streamer's commitment to making the experience as authentic as possible even extended to his suit, which was designed using 3D printing technology to replicate the iconic Batsuit from the games. Kai himself acknowledged the effort that went into the project, stating, 'This took months to put together, from building out the caves to getting the suits made. I wanted to make this the most insane Batman Arkham experience ever.' His dedication to bringing Gotham to life in his streams has solidified his reputation as one of the most creative and entertaining figures in the gaming world. Social media exploded with reactions, with fans praising the streamer's attention to detail. 'This is crazy—who else goes THIS far for a stream?' one user wrote. Another commented, 'Kai Cenat just turned his stream into a full Batman movie.' Kai Cenat is the hardest working streamer of all time — SUAREZ (@suayrez) February 24, 2025 From high-energy gameplay to an immersive setup, Kai's final Batman Arkham stream was nothing short of legendary.
