Pierce Brosnan Lost Batman Role Over This 'Stupid' Statement

Former James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan recently admitted that he could have played a different kind of hero if he had held back a "stupid" comment. The acting veteran is the fifth actor to play the British super spy in the Bond franchise.

Brosnan also has movie credits in several other films like the "Mamma Mia!" franchise and, most recently, DC's "Black Adam." In the movie, the 69-year-old will play Dr. Fate, Black Adam's rival.

In a recent interview, Brosnan revealed that he almost nabbed a more prominent role in the DC Universe as Tim Burton's Batman. The actor was, however, not selected for the role after he questioned the superhero's fashion sense.

Read on to learn more.

Brosnan joined "The Tonight Show" on Tuesday and revealed that he previously auditioned for Batman in the 1989 iteration of the superhero movie. The 69-year-old further admitted that he didn't get the role mainly due to his unfiltered words to Burton, the film's director.

The "Mamma Mia! "actor revealed that at the time, he faulted the superhero's attire in front of Burton. Brosnan said, "I went up for Batman way back in the day when Tim Burton was doing it. Obviously, I didn't get the job."

"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.' But there you go… the best man got the job," he continued

Burton ultimately landed on Michael Keaton to play the role of the masked crusader. Keaton went on to reprise his role as Batman four years later in its sequel, "Batman Returns."

While he lost out on the role of a superhero, the Irish actor went on to play a famous British superspy for almost a decade. He was the fifth actor to nab the role, taking the reins from Timothy Dalton. Brosnan was featured in four 007 titles from 1995 to 2002, leaving the franchise for Daniel Craig to pick up.

While talking to GQ Magazine a few weeks ago, the 69-year-old shed some light on his favorite films by his successor and revealed that he was not particularly fond of Craig's last film, "No Time to Die." He went ahead to compliment the actor as "very strong."

Brosnan also said he did not care about the 007 studio's next pick for the Bond character but thought it would be interesting to see. "It'll be interesting to see who they get, who the man shall be," the actor said. "Whoever he be, I wish him well."

During the Tuesday show, Brosnan revealed that although he did not get the Batman role, "Doctor Fate and I were meant to meet on the same page." The actor is set to play the sorcerer in "Black Adam," another movie adaptation from DC Comics. In the film, the 69-year-old will star opposite Dwayne Johnson, who was cast as the titular character.

Additional characters in the film include Aldis Hodge, Noah Centineo, Quintessa Swindell, Bodhi Sabongui, Aldis Hodge, and several others. The film was written by Adam Sztykiel, Sohrab Noshivani, and Rory Haines, with Jaume Collet-Serra as its director.

"Black Adam" is the spinoff of "Shazam!" and was first mentioned in the 2019 film. A scene in "Shazam!" showed the wizard in charge of passing down the superhero ability talk about someone he had previously given the powers "recklessly." According to the wizard, the unnamed person brought chaos to the world.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, Collet-Serra, the director of "Black Adam," shed light on why he decided on Brosnan for the role. According to him, due to Dr. Fate's personality, a "special" actor was needed to play the character in order for it not to seem "overdone."

"You need a special actor to play, basically, a legend," he explained. "Dr. Fate is a very powerful being, so you need someone like Pierce who can play powerful without it being overly done. He can do it in a very subtle way. I mean, he's one of the coolest people in the world—he was James Bond! But as a person, he's magnetic, so warm with such gravitas."

The DC character is known for his eye-catching golden helmet as well as his amazing supernatural abilities. While impressive, the character cannot compare in strength with Black Adam, his opponent. However, according to Collet-Serra, what he lacks in power, he makes up in raw charisma and, as such, may be able to reason with Johnson's character.