In his big screen adventures Batman has always been a dark, shadowy and mysterious figure, prowling the streets in pursuit of colorful villains like the Joker, Catwoman, the Penguin, the Riddler and Two-Face. Still, for all his enigmatic allure, the Dark Knight was usually upstaged by his scene-stealing adversaries.
In his latest outing Batman Begins, it’s the superhero who finally takes center stage as we learn exactly who he is and how he came to be. And while the filmmakers are lifting the veil of mystery off Batman’s origins, Hollywood.com has descended into the Batcave to uncover the secrets behind the making of the film itself, straight from its stars Christian Bale (Bruce Wayne/Batman), Katie Holmes (Rachel Dawes), Michael Caine (Alfred Pennyworth), Morgan Freeman (Lucius Fox) and Gary Oldman (Det. Jim Gordon). We’re also shining the Bat-Signal on the behind-the-scenes team of director Christopher Nolan, screenwriter David S. Goyer and producer Chuck Rovan; and a glimpse into the world of Batman’s late creator, Bob Kane. So strap into the Batmobile and get ready for a wild ride through the all-new Gotham City.
Christian Bale
“I feel, with all due respect, that I’ve never seen the character defined sufficiently. I had seen in the other movies villains who were fantastic but I never felt like Batman had been fully fleshed out and certainly had never become as threatening a character as I believe he should be…” (Get full story) 
Katie Holmes and Michael Caine
Katie Holmes: “I loved the relationship between Bruce and Rachel, and how their relationship–because they had known each other for so long, they earned that care for each other, and that closeness. And that was exciting and I really wanted to make sure that sort of pure friendship was perceived…”
Michael Caine: “I grew up during the war and we didn’t have comics. I don’t know how–I think they used to make bullets out of comics. So Batman got fired at the Germans, instead of flying at them…” (Get full story)
Morgan Freeman and Gary Oldman
Morgan Freeman: “This Batman differs primarily in background. We know Batman now. We know what motivated him. We know what his drawback is. We know how he got to be that thing. And where all of his toys come from…”
Gary Oldman: “It answers all those questions that we’ve always asked. As Jack Nicholson said [in the 1989 Batman] ‘Where does he get those toys?’ You start thinking ‘Where did he get that car? Why is he a Batman? Why not Grasshopperman? Where’s the Batcave? How did that come about?’ …” (Get full story)
Director Christopher Nolan
“I’m not really a big fan of comic book movies generally, because I felt like what I really wanted to see was a film that conveyed the experience of reading a comic book. That is to say, the mental process you go through when you get into the story. You’re not looking at the page as a flat surface; you’re actually in the action of it. And that’s what I was trying to do in this film…” (Get full story)
Screenwriter Davis S. Goyer and Producer Chuck Rovan
Chuck Rovan: “Batman’s been around for 66 years, and it’s been an American icon. And so it was only a matter of time that we would be trying to bring Batman back to the screen…it would be great to deal with the beginnings of Batman’s career, how Bruce Wayne became Batman, and also wanted to do it in a realistic fashion”
David S. Goyer: “One of the themes, the biggest theme in the movie, is fear. And part of that for Bruce is not just the fear of what happened to him as a child, but the fear of living in his father’s shadow, and not letting his father’s memory down, and not letting Gotham down. Gotham was a city that in large part was moved forward by his father.” (Get full story)
Elizabeth Sanders Kane, Batman creator Bob Kane’s widow
Elizabeth Kane: “I think [Bob] would be really thrilled, because in this film they’re addressing Batman’s spirituality, and he always wanted to see a film about the spirituality of The Batman, because he himself was a very spiritual person and had, for lack of better word, worked with spiritual gurus his whole life. He really did, and so he always wanted to look at the spiritual roots of Bruce Wayne and Batman, and I think they’re doing it this time around.” (Get full story) Batman Begins opens in theaters June 15.
