During the 1980s, Tim Burton made a name for himself as a filmmaker in Hollywood, and after the success of Beetlejuice, the director got busy making Batman. This superhero tale was going to feature a notable shift in tone from previous DC movies, and Burton was leading the charge.
The production of this movie was not an easy one for the cast and crew, and there were a number of issues that popped up along the way. At one point, a $100,000 problem arose, and this forced Burton and his team to scramble and figure things out in a pinch.
Let's take a look back at 1989's Batman and see what happened when someone went behind Burton's back.
'Batman' Was A Huge Success
When looking at the history of superhero movies, it becomes quite clear that Tim Burton's Batman is one of the most important movies in the history of the genre. Unlike the Superman movies that preceded it, this flick went with a darker and more sinister tone and benefitted greatly from it.
Batman was a film that was not afraid to show the darker sides of crime-fighting in Gotham, and it helped the character become a powerhouse on the big screen. Burton's style was a perfect match for the Dark Knight, and at long last, Batman fans were treated to a cinematic classic.
As much as the casting choice was rebuked at the time, Michael Keaton was stellar as Batman, and he could not have been a better match for Burton's style. Add on performers like Kim Basinger and Jack Nicholson, and this film had all the makings to be a monster hit on the big screen.
Despite Burton and his crew being an exceptional fit for the flim, there were a number of things going wrong during production. All movies are difficult in their own way, but from the very beginning, there were plenty of issues going on with Batman.
The Movie Needed A Ton Of Work
Pulling off any movie requires a ton of work from the cast and crew, and the folks bringing Batman to life back in the 80s had their fair share of difficulties while making the movie.
One early problem with filming came when Sean Young sustained an injury and needed to be replaced. This wound up working out in Burton's favor, as Kim Basinger got the chance to star as Vicki Vale in the film. She delivered an exceptional performance that fans loved.
Another major problem was the script itself, which needed a ton of revisions. There were disagreements about the tone of the film, which Burton took in a darker direction. This worked out favorably, as well, as Burton's tone really helped show what a superhero movie could do on the big screen without being campy.
There was already a lot going on with this project that was working against it, and as things got deeper into production, a $100,000 blunder wound up causing even more problems than Burton needed.
The $100,000 Blunder
A major problem occurring was with the film's ending, which was intended to be different than what the fans got in the final cut. In the original ending, the Joker was going to kill Vicki, which would have sent Batman on the hunt for revenge. However, Jon Peters went ahead and changed things around, all without Burton knowing.
To further complicate things, Peters, without Burton's permission, went ahead with a $100,000 cathedral prop that he wanted to use in the film, and this caused some huge problems.
Burton has admitted that during that time, the finale in the movie wasn't making any sense, and even the actors had noticed this being the case.
"Here were Jack Nicholson and Kim Basinger walking up this cathedral, and halfway up Jack turns around and says, 'Why am I walking up all these stairs? Where am I going?' 'We'll talk about it when you get to the top!' I had to tell him that I didn't know," said Burton.
Suddenly, the director was in a pinch, and he was under the gun to figure things out and help the movie reach a nice conclusion that actually made sense.
Eventually, Burton and the team were able to work with what they had to come up with an ending that worked for the movie. It's wild to think that a film that was already over its budget wound up getting an additional $100,000 charge for something that the director didn't even know about.