00:00It's the most
00:05infamous comic book movie of all time.
00:08Warner Brothers Batman and Robin
00:10seem poised to be a home run when it was released 20 years ago on June 20th, 1997.
00:15Why?
00:16Well, director Joel Schumacher was fresh off a surprise hit with 1995's Batman
00:20forever and most of his team was returning.
00:23Though Schumacher lost lead Val Kilman
00:25as Batman, George Clooney, the promising star of TV's ER, quickly stepped in
00:30to don the cape and Batman voice thing.
00:32You know, that gravelly deep Batman voice.
00:35I'm George Clooney.
00:37One of the world's top box office draws Arnold Schwarzenegger
00:40came aboard as the villainous Mr. Freeze.
00:43And there were talents like Batman Forever's
00:45Chris O'Donnell as Robin and clueless breakout Alicia Silverstone as Batgirl.
00:50Plus, an Oscar nominee Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy to round out a star-packed cast.
00:55The movie was stacked, so what could go wrong?
00:59Well, how...
01:00How can we put this?
01:01Hmm...
01:02Apparently everything.
01:03To find out what specifically...
01:05Did go wrong.
01:06The Hollywood Reporter's comic book movie destination, Heat Vision, caught up with Schumacher
01:10and eight other people who labored over the film.
01:13So, why didn't the movie shape up...
01:15Who has hoped?
01:16For starters, Arnold signed on for a cool $25 million.
01:20It cost a million dollars every time I make a freeze pun.
01:24Kiss my...
01:25All right, everyone.
01:26Chill.
01:27The cast ate the money up.
01:30Says producer Peter McGregor Scott.
01:32It's tough when you wake up in the morning and just spend 25...
01:35$25 million dollars.
01:36Oh, dear.
01:37But he was great.
01:38The production of Batman and Robin inspired...
01:40a type of hysteria that's common today, but was quite unusual 20 years ago.
01:45The media and fan interest was intense throughout its production, leading to a security issue.
01:50According to McGregor Scott, they were getting $10,000 for a picture of Arnold.
01:55And we had a fabric tent around him when he would walk from his trailer to the stage.
01:59I'm...
02:00I'm going to set.
02:01Clooney was the lead, but he didn't quite yet have the star wattage of Schwarzenegger
02:05here on set.
02:06While the small-time character actors were wowed to see the Terminator in person...
02:10Clooney didn't loom as large, though he did enjoy humorously talking about his uncomfortable
02:15costumes.
02:15If you don't remember, he couldn't move his neck.
02:18Another big negative for the film...
02:20Alicia Silverstone was the victim of body shaming in the press and even got grief from her
02:25production office.
02:26Her Batgirl character was introduced as a way to bring in a younger...
02:30female audience to the franchise.
02:32But the actress faced intense media scrutiny after...
02:35being cast that her male co-stars never did.
02:38Silverstone, then just a teenager...
02:40was criticized by fashion critics after presenting at that year's Oscars.
02:45anger and Silverstone spokesperson issued a statement in her defense, and to assure the
02:50press she...
02:50was training hard for the role of Batgirl.
02:52In the production office, she also became the target
02:55of a joke after rumors circulated
02:56Silverstone was having trouble in costume fittings.
03:00For Schumacher, his goal with Silverstone's Barbara
03:03was to make her more than just this little
03:05blonde girl in a boarding school costume.
03:07There were even earlier warning signs that Batman and
03:10Robin might be in trouble.
03:12Schumacher and screenwriter Akiva Goldsman went straight
03:15from Batman Forever to a time to kill,
03:17right back to Batman and Robin.
03:20Akiva was very leery about Batman and Robin.
03:23We had a couple very serious discussions.
03:25about it and he was right about it in the long run,
03:27says Schumacher.
03:28Reviews were...
03:30less than kind.
03:31Still, the movie opened at number one on June 20th, 1997
03:34with 42...
03:35million dollars on its way to 238 million dollars worldwide
03:39on 120...
03:40twenty five million dollar budget.
03:41But it ended its box office run nearly a hundred million
03:44dollars short of...
03:45Batman Forever's haul.
03:46The movie was called the second worst Batman movie of all time.
03:50from the Hollywood Reporter critics John DeFore and Jordan Mincer
03:53who said the film killed...
03:55the franchise and...
03:56logically should have been Batman and Robin meet Batgirl or...
04:00Batman and Robin will be embarrassed for a long time.
04:03Head to THR.com for lots of...
04:05more from Schumacher and the crew including a Schwarzenegger battery
04:08acid leak.
04:09The director...
04:10taking all the blame and more.
04:12How do you remember Batman and Robin?
04:14Was it as bad as all...
04:15that?
04:16Was it worse?
04:17And who wants to defend it?
04:18Let me know in the comments guys.
04:19For the...
04:20The Hollywood Reporter News.
04:21I'm Paul Gustabile.
04:22And man, this was cold.
04:24Goodbye.
04:25Goodbye guys.
04:26Goodbye guys.
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