Outdone by the “Oppenheimer” star: Robert Downey Jr. wanted to take on this role in Christopher Nolan’s “Batman” trilogy

The atomic bomb biopic “Oppenheimer” is not only one of the most successful, but also one of the best films of 2023. On March 11, 2024, Christopher Nolan’s three-hour epic (“Interstellar”) has a very good chance of winning a few Oscars. Including for Cillian Murphy (Best Actor) and Robert Downey Jr. (Best Supporting Actor). The latter has now revealed that he once auditioned for a role that ultimately went to Murphy.

This is Dr. Jonathan Crane, aka Scarecrow, who was introduced as a villain in Christopher Nolan’s “Batman Begins” and went on to make minor appearances in “The Dark Knight” and “The Dark Knight Rises.” The role was played by Cillian Murphy in the first collaboration between the Irish actor and director Nolan, who in addition to ‘Oppenheimer’ also collaborated on ‘Inception’ and ‘Dunkirk’.

In a question-and-answer session, Robert Downey Jr. that he was also once interested in the role of Scarecrow, but soon realized that Christopher Nolan had not actually intended to cast him in the role: ‘I remember meeting him for tea and thinking he didn’t seem particularly committed to this interview. He was polite and all, but when someone is like that you quickly realize the conversation is going nowhere.”

In retrospect, none of the parties involved are likely to mourn the decision to fire Robert Downey Jr. not seen as a villain in ‘Batman Begins’. Soon after, he could become Iron Man, arguably the most popular superhero in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as Nolan and Murphy laid the groundwork for their collaboration, which could now culminate in real Oscar rain for “Oppenheimer” this year. In total, the film has been nominated for 13 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director.