Robert Pattinson is one of the most in-demand actors of our time. Since breaking out in the Twilight movies in 2009, he has starred in leading roles in several big-budget Hollywood blockbusters. Now that the actor is establishing himself as a major movie star, he is looking to continue making a name for himself in the Academy Awards spotlight. Pattinson recently landed a role in the upcoming Justice League movie, and he spoke to Access about how he prepared for the role and what it means for his acting career.
The Film: ‘Justice League’
The new Justice League movie will be released on November 17, 2017, and will be the third installment of the popular DC Comics adaptation trilogy, following 2015’s Suicide Squad and 2017’s Wonder Woman. The film will once again star an ensemble cast, including Will Smith, Henry Cavill, Armie Hammer, and so on. Directed by Zach Synder, the movie will bring together several of DC Comics’ most popular superheroes — including Batman (played by Smith), Wonder Woman (Cavill’s character from WW), The Flash (Hammer’s character from The Flash), and Cyborg (played by Tony Curran, who also played Victor Stone in the first two Justice League movies).
The plot of Justice League centers on an army of famous superheroes who come together to fight a common threat. On a mission to save the world, they find themselves pitted against a seemingly immortal enemy who also happens to be their biggest threat. In addition to saving the world, the film also aims to give its heroes some much-deserved peace and happiness at the end. Though it will be heartbreaking to some fans when the film closes, it will be an exciting moment for the entire acting community.
The Role: Commissioner Gordon
The most interesting part of the Justice League role for Pattinson is probably the Commissioner Gordon part. Commissioner Gordon is the head of the Gotham City Police Department and a long-time friend of Bruce Wayne (Smith’s character from the Batman series). At the end of Suicide Squad, Gordon was retired from the force and went on to lead a happy life with Wayne. Now, the character has a whole new set of adventures ahead of him. As the head of the Gotham City Police Department, Gordon will have authority over the entire organization. In the comics, Gordon is famous for having arrested Batman on more than one occasion. It will be interesting to see how Batman and Gordon’s relationship evolves in the film.
As for the character’s physical appearance, the producers of the new Justice League film turned to makeup artist Peter Ming-Zhang to help give Commissioner Gordon a more realistic look for the big screen. Zhang, who also created the characters for the Warcraft and Devil May Cry games, gave the character a more intelligent and alert appearance through his prosthetic makeup. In the comics, Gordon is often depicted with a mustache and aviator sunglasses, and many fans have pointed out that Zhang’s portrayal of the character is very similar to the one used by actor and comedian Sean Connery in the 1960s TV series’ Batman. However, while Zhang gave Gordon a more realistic appearance, he still retained many of the character’s iconic details including the mustache, sunglasses, and catchphrase “You gotta be kidding me.”
The Prep Work: Studying The Character
Before we get into the acting skill sets needed to play Commissioner Gordon, let’s take a moment to discuss the importance of studying the character. Like many big-budget Hollywood productions, Justice League was shot on a lot of different sets around the world. After filming was completed in London, the team of filmmakers needed a way to transport the finished product back to the U.S. for post-production work. To save time and money, the producers looked to the Global Brigade, a service that provides mobile production units and driver/guides for movies and commercials. The Global Brigade assigned two of their experienced professionals to help guide the crew and handle all the logistics of getting the footage back to the U.S. One of the members of the Brigade was James Cagney, an Oscar-winning filmmaker who has worked on several of George Clooney’s projects. Cagney, who was also attached as a creative consultant, spoke to the Access TV host about the importance of studying the character and making sure that you understand the motivations of the different personalities involved.
The Need For Collaboration
Just because there are several established stars in a movie does not mean that it is easy to find the right people to work with. In fact, many big-budget productions have gone through several script drafts before the writers and directors arrive at a complete version that can be filmed. To save time, the producers of Justice League worked with an established screenwriting team, Michael Goldenberg and Leslie Hung, who have both worked on several high-profile films, to help flesh out the story. In a recent interview with Deadline, Goldenberg and Hung discussed the collaborative process, which began with a pitch meeting with Pattinson and other members of the franchise’s cast and crew. From there, they went through several drafts to polish the plot and bring it to the level needed for the big screen.
Although the writing process was crucial to the success of the film, the collaboration between the filmmakers and the screenwriters was only part of the puzzle. The production designers, costume designers, and makeup artists also had a hand in crafting the look of Commissioner Gordon, and the entire crew worked together as a unit to bring the character to life.
The Acting: The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly
Now that we have discussed the work that went into creating Commissioner Gordon, let’s take a look at what kind of acting expertise is needed to play the part. Unfortunately, not all established stars have what it takes to play complicated or multifaceted characters, and it is often the smaller roles that give us an insight into an actor’s true talents. One of the best examples of this is Heath Ledger, who won an Academy Award for his portrayal of the Joker in The Dark Knight. Despite Ledger’s amazing performance, he was not widely considered to be a great actor prior to The Dark Knight. He did not have the same degree of experience in portraying more than one character, and the Joker was arguably one of the most complicated and multifaceted characters in pop culture history. Ledger’s performance in The Dark Knight solidified his status as an accomplished dramatic actor, and since then, he has often been sought after to portray extraordinary or iconic characters.
Another example of an acting phenomenon is Sylvester Stallone, who had an excellent career before he became a movie star. He began his acting career in the military and quickly rose through the ranks. Stallone played a wide variety of roles during his time in the service, and he was even considered to be the best supporting actor for his role in Rocky II. After his retirement from the military, Stallone went on to play The Terminator in The Terminator and later reprised the role in two sequels, Terminator 2 and Terminator 3. Though these roles did not require a great deal of acting skill, they did require Stallone to portray a machine.
Though he had many good roles in his early career, Stallone never found mainstream success, which led to several flops in the following years. In recent years, however, Stallone has found his mojo and has been able to secure several lucrative acting roles, including the iconic part of Rambo in the Rambo series and several prominent supporting roles in big-budget Hollywood productions, most notably Creed, in which he played the role of Adonis Creed, the grandson of Rocky. Since 2015, Stallone has been appearing in a string of hit films, including Knock Knock, The Expendables 3, and Creed II. It would appear that the 71-year-old legend has reinvented himself as a major Hollywood player.