Cast of Batman v Superman Talk Characters

By: Lynn Barker

With Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice opening, the actors are reflecting on their love of comics, how they approach playing such iconic characters and more. Gal Godot (Wonder Woman) reveals that her very young daughter is glad her mom isn’t playing a pretty but weak princess and Amy Adams admits that her fave scene is one in the bathtub….with Superman!

Q: Henry, what did you like about Superman in this new movie as opposed to Man of Steel?

• Henry: To me, this was the development of Superman, of the character that we know and love in the comic books. We're still not there yet. We are looking at the guy growing up. He's become this Superman after discovering he was Kal-El in the first movie and now it's a tough outing for him because he’s against a psychological enemy as opposed to a physical enemy like Zod was. We see him make mistakes and we see him grow through his mistakes and learn from them

Q: And Ben, how did you decide to take a role that many have already played and work out what makes Batman tick for this film?

• Ben: For me, there was really enough material in the screenplay and with Zack [Snyder’s] direction, there was plenty for me to grab onto and to use my imagination to build this character. It's certainly daunting because of the people who've played him before most recently obviously Christian Bale who's made three brilliant movies and all the guys that went before them, there's that element of healthy respect you have for the project, the history and it raises the bar, certainly. I thought I was in really good hands with this script and Zack so that focused my attention.

Q: What was your immediate reaction when you first heard the title of this film? Did you think it was ridiculous that Batman could destroy Superman?

• Ben: I didn't think it was crazy because I read, when I was a kid, 'The Dark Knight Returns'. This comic where Superman fought Batman and it was really original and interesting and it turned the genre on its head. It was a morally gray sort of story. It changed the way I saw comic books. I had been familiar with that idea for a long time, so when I heard that this was the idea of this movie I thought, "That's brilliant," because it's one of the greatest ideas in comics that hasn't been mined yet for films.

Q: Henry, did you think it was a crazy idea?

• Henry: I agree with Ben on that one. I knew the comic book, especially the Frank Miller one. Also, the relationship in the comic books between Batman and Superman, the idea was nothing but exciting because we're opening up the cinematic universe for all of DC Comics.

Q: What did you think about the Israeli actress, Gal Gadot, as the new Wonder Woman?

• Ben: It was a tremendous treat. She's the best. She did such a great amazing job and made all the scenes that I was in with her, better, made me better. She's my favorite part of the movie when she shows up, I don't want to give anything away, but she helps me out. She's a terrific actress and I think Wonder Woman is going to be very good. This is a lot of fun. I'm excited to keep working with her. 
• Henry: It's tough to sound genuine, by just repeating that, but it's true. Gal works to define Wonder Woman. She brings something particular, something statuesque, something otherworldly to the character and it's remarkable to see.
• Ben: I wish I had heard you say that two days ago. I could have just Xeroxed it for all my answers. (laughter)

Q: Jesse, what do you say to those who were critical when they heard of you playing Lex Luthor?

• Jesse: It's certainly strange and slightly unnerving to be criticized for a part you haven't yet been able to screw up. I think I probably would have also been surprised had I read that I was playing Lex Luthor without having access to this wonderful script and this incredible character written by Chris Terrio who created a character I thought was suitable for me. If you look at just the cannon, the mythology, and the history of Superman, I might not be the first person to come to mind, but if you read the script and understood how the character was contextualized in this kind-of like modern era, in the way he was written, I hoped that after people had seen the movie they would understand that I was more appropriate than they originally feared. 

Q: And Gal, what do you say to those not onboard with your playing Wonder Woman?

• Gal: Yeah, I agree. Also, you can't please them all and for me, being an actress, my responsibility is not to pay too much attention to all the noise around me, but to pay attention to the script, to the director, Zack and protect the character and try to tell her story the best I can. I can only do my best.

Q: So many actresses were considered for the part. What was the audition process like for you?

• Gal: Warner Brothers wanted to audition me for something. They would not say what. So, of course, I was intrigued and I did the audition. Two weeks later they asked me to do a camera test with Ben. I said, "Great! What's the role?" My agent told me that they would not say a word. Zack called me the same night and said, "Well, I'm not sure if you have it in Israel, but did you ever hear about Wonder Woman?" I think I went dead for a few good seconds and then tried to pull off my best voice saying, "Wonder Woman, yeah, of course." Then I did the camera test with Ben, which was great. Finally, seven weeks later, they called me to say that I got the part and that was it. 

Q: Gal, what do you think of the old T.V. series with Linda Carter as Wonder Woman? Did you go back and look at that?

• Gal: No, I was too young to watch the Linda Carter TV show, I was five. But, after they cast me for this role, I did watch a couple of episodes. I think that Linda Carter was a magnificent Wonder Woman and those were certainly big shoes to fit into. When they cast me for this movie, Zack and everyone had a very clear vision of who Wonder Woman should be, what her story is, and how they want to tell it. All I had to do was give my own notes and inputs and just embody everything and be her.

Q: Do you think the character will inspire today’s girls?

• Gal: I have a four-year-old daughter and she adores princesses but she would tell me about the princesses, “She's so weak, she falls asleep, the prince will come and save her, and kiss her and he's the hero”. So, I'm so happy to be the one that's going to tell the Wonder Woman story. It's such an important story to tell and I'm grateful for it, but I also think that it's so important for girls and boys too to have a strong female superhero to look up to. The more the merrier and there's plenty for room for women to (join in). I’m very, very happy to be a part of that.  

Q: Amy, After Man of Steel, are you starting to feel like a superhero veteran? Does this get easier? Do you get used to it? Is there a certain language you adopt when you're playing the love interest of a superhero character?

• Amy: You never really get used to it. The scale of it is always really impressive and every time I walk on set I'm completely blown away. What has been so nice was getting to know everybody through the course of the years and getting to bring these relationships we've all established over the course of working together and getting to use that in the film. We grow as the characters grow and so it's been a real joy to just get to come back and see all these lovely folks again and all of the new ones I'm absolutely in love with.

Q: Ben, do you think Batman is more humanly willful than powerful?

• Ben: I think you're onto something when you talk about will versus strength. Batman, I think one of the reasons this character has resonated so long with the audiences, regardless of the way the country has changed and pop-culture has changed, is because you have a guy who on the one hand is powerful and exciting and can do things that we all wish we could do, but is still a human being and struggling with his own vulnerabilities, fragilities and struggling with his own will. He accomplishes things by force of will. That was fun and exciting to play. And there were equal measures of my adult geekiness and kid excitement for this movie. Every day there was something to geek-out about and be excited by and be like, "I can't believe I get to be in this movie." It was exciting every day.

Q: Ben, Henry and Amy, what is a day or moment from shooting the film you will always remember?

• Ben: Well, it was a very unnerving day, it's true, wearing the suit and being on camera (for the first time) you think, "Well, here it is. I'm really doing this." It was very nice to have Diane (Lane's) friendly face there and a great actress. She kind of looked at me, "Yeah, it's going to be OK." I appreciated that day.
• Henry: I didn’t see that. I was in the green room at the time but, for me, the third act, for me in particular, resonated. It was probably, while watching the movie, where I felt the most and got to step outside the actor and was part of the audience.
• Amy: I'm gonna go with the bathtub scene...I'm just kidding (she laughs). No, that was actually horrible, just trying to protect my modesty in unflattering garments while the demigod here stood above me with his shirt off. It was like low self-esteem for two weeks after that (laughs). It's true, I was like, "I'm hideous." 
• I had so much fun in this film and I love working with Henry so much and really getting to come back to that relationship in a richer way was really awesome, but there's a moment in the third act, with Diane, that became my favorite moment, just a quiet moment between two women. I guess, just as an actress, I like quiet moments. 

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is in theaters now!

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