James Bond star Pierce Brosnan revealed what he called the “stupid” comment he made that sunk his chances to play Batman, a role that eventually went to Michael Keaton.
During the 69-year-old actor’s recent appearance on “The Tonight Show,” Brosnan told host Jimmy Fallon that when he auditioned for the role of the caped crusader in Tim Burton’s 1989 movie, titled “Batman,” he really messed up.
“I went up for Batman way back in the day when Tim Burton was doing it,” the “Die Another Day” star explained. “Obviously, I didn’t get the job.”
“But I remember saying something stupid to Tim Burton, I said, ‘You know I can’t understand any man who would wear his underpants outside his trousers,’” he added. “But there you go … the best man got the job.”
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Burton ended up picking Keaton, whose take on Batman has become one of the most iconic in all the caped crusader films. Keaton would later reprise the role in 1992’s “Batman Returns.”
Now, the 71-year-old actor will once again don the cape in the upcoming film “The Flash” as Bruce Wayne, a.k.a. the Dark Knight, in the movie that hits the theaters in June 2023, USA Today noted.
As far as Brosnan, he might not have gotten to be Batman, but he did do okay after landing the famed role of 007 in several Bond films starting in 1995 with “Golden Eye,” followed by “Tomorrow Never Dies” two years later. He would return to the spy role two years after that in “The World is Not Enough” before exiting the franchise in 2002 with “Die Another Day.”
Following news that Daniel Craig was leaving the Bond franchise, Brosnan said he really didn’t have an opinion. Craig has played James Bond in five of the franchise’s films, from 2006-2021.
“Who should do it?” Pierce said to GQ magazine. “I don’t care.”
“It’ll be interesting to see who they get, who the man shall be,” he added. “Whoever he be, I wish him well.”