STACK March 2017 Issue 149

18 / 97

16 MARCH 2017
visit CINEMA FEATURE
A fter Will Arnett debuted his
gravelly Batman voice in
2014’s The LEGO Movie,
he left both fans and filmmakers
wanting more.
“What was so special about
Batman in the first movie is that
he was selfish and egotistical, but
still loveable in his own way,” says
returning LEGO producer Dan Lin.
“He has zero self-awareness; a total
subversion of the superhero genre.
We wanted to give him his own
movie.”
If Will Arnett’s spot-on delivery came as a
surprise to many, then he argues that it’s all
in the family.
“My dad had a pretty deep voice so he’s
always claimed that if anything happens to
me, he could take over my career. By the
way, I’m like: 'Thanks a lot! I’m your son!
Your son is dead! Are you not worried about
that!?” laughs Arnett when STACK meets
with him in Beverly Hills.
“But ever since I hit puberty, my voice
started to drop – along with everything else.”
His inspiration, he says, is Michael Keaton’s
Batman. “His growl wasn’t so deep or as
dark as Christian Bale’s but it was very fresh.
Keaton and Tim Burton started the idea that
Batman talks like this,” says Arnett, slipping
into his Batman voice. “That’s Michael Keaton
man! And that’s what we’ve come to take for
granted as The Batman. He came up with it.
And at the same time, while he was Bruce
Wayne, he was kind of playful and a
bon vivant playboy. Michael Keaton
is obviously an amazing actor and
doesn’t get enough credit.”
Arnett is joined by Zach
Galifianakis, who voices Batman’s
wannabe arch nemesis The Joker,
and is likewise fascinated by
Arnett’s voice, suggesting his throat
must be a weird shape.
BATMAN
BLOCK BUSTER
STACK talks Batman's trademark growl, bromance withThe Joker and
bizarre social media backlash with The LEGO Batman Movie's Will Arnett,
Zach Galifianakis and Rosario Dawson. Words Gill Pringle
[Michael Keaton's] growl wasn't
so deep or as dark as Christian
Bale's but it was very fresh