Christian Bale has given his blessing to whoever ends up playing Patrick Bateman in Luca Guadagnino’s forthcoming American Psycho adaptation, and his advice is characteristically straightforward.
Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter at the US premiere of his new film The Bride! in New York City on Tuesday, 3rd March, Bale was asked who he would like to see take on the role he made iconic in Mary Harron’s 2000 horror comedy.
The Oscar winner, 52, said he had no particular actor in mind.
“Whoever wants to give it a shot, give it a pop,” he said. “I loved making it with Mary Harron so many years back, fantastic memories of it all.”
He was equally generous about the project itself, even if he admitted he didn’t know much about what Guadagnino has planned.
“Bold choice of anyone to try to do a, I don’t know if they’re doing a remake or what, I don’t know anything else about it,” he said.
“But all the best to ’em, I like brave people.”
Guadagnino first teased his version, described as a new adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis’ 1991 novel rather than a remake of Harron’s film, at CinemaCon last April.
Bale also took the opportunity to share a long-running family anecdote about the original film.
He recalled how his wife Sibi’s mother once sat down to watch American Psycho after learning he was an actor, unaware of quite what she was letting herself in for.
“Sibi’s mom hadn’t realised quite how many inappropriate moments there might be,” he said, adding that the family started fast-forwarding through scenes, only to discover the problem didn’t go away.
“And then she realised that almost the entire film is inappropriate. They got through it in 15 minutes.”
His latest film sees him take on another literary monster, Frankenstein‘s creature, here called Frank, in The Bride!.
Set in the 1930s, the film pairs Bale’s lonely, undead Frank with Jessie Buckley’s titular character as the two become outlaw lovers who ignite a cultural movement.
The Bride! opens in cinemas on 6th March.
