Batman & Robin may be far from the best Batman movie to ever grace the screen, but the George Clooney-led adventure, which also featured Alicia Silverstone and Chris O’Donnell in primary roles, remains iconic in many ways. It has become a cult classic and meme fodder. It continues to be in conversation over the many years since its release.
Silverstone and O’Donnell recently reflected on the film, its initial failure, and their friendship that was forged through the chaos of filming.
Alicia Silverstone and Chris O’Donnell on dealing with Batman & Robin’s failure
Alicia Silverstone and Chris O’Donnell, who played Batgirl and Robin, respectively, talked to Entertainment Weekly about the chaos of Batman & Robin. The movie remains both a disaster and a classic.
Silverstone was cast alongside Clooney and O’Donnell in Batman & Robin. But it marked the first time she was doing an action film. “I remember a lot of things not making sense,” she recalled. “We would be in a big warehouse and there were so many extras and so much going on…. [George] really was like a big brother in those circumstances. So cool. He stood up for me and was reasonable when things were not,” Alicia added.
She added about the inconvenience of filming, “And to get the outfit on took so much time and energy…And once you had it on, you couldn’t go to the bathroom for ages. These were not easy costumes. You had to put baby powder all over your body to get it on. The whole thing was a big production.”
She also explained how she struggled to understand how the special effects would fit into the scenes. Things did wrap up well, but the reception of the film became a huge problem from the start.
“All of a sudden, you were starting to get the feedback, and you realize it was just going sideways,” O’Donnell recalled, “There was so much hatred of the film when it came out. It was like, ‘Oh my God.’ And you want to do your job and promote the movie.” He added, “It was a tough one for us all to digest.”
But he added on a positive note, “We were lucky to be in the movie, and it was fun to be a part of it. It is what it is. Some work out and some don’t.”
Silverstone also expressed how things changed over the years as the reception toward the film turned more and more positive. O’Donnell also expressed how the movie does have fans. He mentions how, over the years, it has cemented its status as a classic superhero movie, even if it’s not the best one.
With an array of big stars, it continues to command a fanbase.
