Robert Pattinson explains why he nixed Bruce Wayne’s playboy traits in The Batman

For Bruce Wayne, life during the daytime typically features plenty of millionaire activities such as fancy charity balls and and elegant parties where he maintains a cool air and women cling to him. However, in Matt Reeves’ The Batman, lead Robert Pattinson wanted to leave Wayne’s playboy persona behind.

In previous iterations of Bruce Wayne/Batman, his ladies’ man persona helped shield his identity as the Caped Crusader, and the glamorous balls he attended often set the stage for unfolding drama. But for Pattinson, focusing on the more brooding, introverted aspects of the character not only helped in his work but also made more sense to him overall.

“When you think about Bruce Wayne, you kind of think he’s a playboy, and then that’s how he disguises himself, so no one knows he’s Batman. As soon as you take that away, it made the character almost make more sense,” Pattinson tells EW. “There’s something about a person who would be able to delineate three incredibly distinct personalities, and then just being able to switch them as an outfit at will. That’s really way more sociopathic than someone who doesn’t really have much more control over it and is compelled to put this suit on. It’s kind of out of his control a little bit.”

Additionally, it’s about Bruce Wayne’s unresolved trauma.

“Also, it made more sense with the grieving process as well if he hasn’t gotten over being the 10-year-old boy who, in his mind, let his parents die. What he feels is himself, he thinks is an incredibly weak and vulnerable child, and he needs to have an entirely different alter ego to survive himself, let alone fight all the criminals of Gotham.”

Pattinson stars in The Batman with Zoë Kravitz as Selina Kyle, Paul Dano as The Riddler, Jeffrey Wright as Lieutenant Jim Gordon, Colin Farrell as Penguin, and John Turturro as Carmine Falcone.

The Batman is currently showing in theaters.