On the podcast ‘Happy Sad Confused,’ Mark Wahlberg revealed that he had been in talks to play Dick Grayson, aka Robin, in Joel Schumacher’s version of the Batman story. He recalled:
“We met, quite a few times. We talked about it. I never got the official offer. But he tried to – he was interested, and there were conversations.”
Despite these talks, the ‘Shooter’ and ‘The Departed’ star never went through a screen test for the Robin costume, and he’s pretty okay with that:
“No, I can’t imagine Mark Wahlberg in a Robin costume, I’m gonna be honest. No, I’m glad I didn’t get that offer.”
He Could Easily Turn The Offer Down
It seems Wahlberg feels he dodged a bullet by not landing the role. The ‘Batman’ series had its highs with the 1989 ‘Batman’ and ‘Batman Returns,’ but ‘Batman Forever’ and ‘Batman & Robin’ didn’t hit the mark for many fans.
These latter films, directed by Schumacher instead of Tim Burton, didn’t stir up the same excitement, partly because of their take on characters like Robin.
Despite the problems with writing and tone, these films were still part of a big franchise, something noted in the interview. When asked if he would have found it difficult to turn down the role if it had been offered, Wahlberg, now 52, shared:
“Well, I could easily just be like, ‘No, why would I ever do that?’ I mean everything would tell you that’s okay to say right now. That would be expected but I really don’t know. You know, looking back just to be as honest as possible.”
There Are Still Rumors Of A Superhero Role For The Actor
In recent years, Wahlberg has been vocal about his criticisms of the constant use of CGI and the sameness of many modern superhero movies. Despite these criticisms, there have been speculations about his possible involvement in various Marvel or DC projects.
Notably, rumors in the 2010s suggested the actor might have been considered for the role of Green Lantern in Zack Snyder’s DCEU, though he made it clear in the interview that no such discussions took place.
Wahlberg did mention, however, that there were talks about a potential role in Snyder’s ‘Watchmen,’ although he couldn’t remember which character was in question.
Adding to it all, there were whispers that Wahlberg had talks with Sony about joining the Sony Spider-Man Universe while working on ‘Uncharted,’ though nothing has been confirmed.
