‘WTF Was He Talking About’ Tim Burton On Jack Nicholson’s Manner of Speaking
Director Tim Burton
Many cinema critics have acknowledged that Tim Burton’s 1989 film Batman was a major influence on the formation of the superhero picture genre, primarily Burton’s “Gothic” style. But as was recently revealed, there were problems with communication on the set.In an interview with a British magazine, director Tim Burton talked about the problems he had on the set of the 1989 film “Batman” with Joker actor Jack Nicholson. It was stated that Nicholson’s manner of speaking was extremely difficult to understand.
"Jack has a very abstract way of speaking. So he would say things to me and I'd go, 'Yeah, I get it,' and then I'd go to someone, 'What the f*** was he just talking about?'" explained Burton. "So there was this weird communication: non-linear, non-connective… But it was very clear to me. I felt like we had a good sort of caveman-style communication," Burton added.
The director also noted that although he had made two films (1985’s Pee Wee’s Big Adventure and 1988’s Beetlejuice) by the time he started shooting Batman, he was still very nervous. He also noted that Nicholson helped him a lot on the set:“[Nicholson] protected me and nurtured me, kept me going, by just not getting too overwhelmed with the whole thing. I felt really supported by him in a very deep way,” Burton said. “… And him being a voice of support had a lot of resonance with the studio. It got me through the whole thing. It gave me strength.”Burton’s Batman was very successful at the box office, grossing over $400 million on a budget of less than $50 million, and was awarded an Oscar for Best Art Direction.The interview, in which Tim Burton revealed details about the filming of Batman, was timed to coincide with the success of the Wednesday series. For Burton, this is his first directorial feature since 2019.
