Renowned method actor Christian Bale is known for putting everything into his roles. However, while the actor recently handed in a strong performance as Thor: Love and Thunder, the actor did not hand in his best.
In an interview with GQ, Bale revealed that working on the movie was a monotonous mess. With nothing but green screen to work with, the actor wasn’t able to embody his character the way he wanted.
Christian Bale vs Marvel productions
In the interview, Bale expressed dissatisfaction with Marvel‘s over-reliance on digital effects and green screens. Marvel has often been criticised for its heavy use of VFX, so much so that CGI artists have boycotted the studio.
Bale explained that the new filming practices are “the definition of… monotony.” He said: “Can you differentiate one day from the next? No. Absolutely not. You have no idea what to do. I couldn’t even differentiate one stage from the next.”
“They kept saying, ‘You’re on Stage Three.’” He continued. “Well, it’s like, ‘Which one is that?’ ‘The blue one.’ They’re like, ‘Yeah. But you’re on Stage Seven.’ ‘Which one is that?’ ‘The blue one.’ I was like, ‘Uh, where?’”
Nevertheless, the actor admitted that he can see that others are better at acting on constant green screens. While the method may not be for him, others do just fine. He explained: “You’ve got good people. You’ve got other actors who are far more experienced at it than me.”
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He couldn’t embody the character
The method acting nature of Christian Bale is well known amongst film buffs. In the past, Bale has lost obscene amounts of weight for his role in The Machinist. Furthermore, he gained a substantial amount of muscle directly after for Batman Begins.
However, embodying his role as Gorr the God Butcher just wasn’t possible. While actors like Jared Leto may be able to “go method” for awful productions like Morbius, Bale isn’t like that at all.
“That would’ve been a pitiful attempt to do that,” he said. “As I’m trying to get help getting the fangs in and out and explaining I’ve broken a nail, or I’m tripping over the tunic.”
Despite its issues, Christian Bale handed in a pretty darn good performance in Thor: Love and Thunder. Far from his best work, the character felt exactly right for the actor. We just wish the film was better.
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