Bale enjoyed punching Damon
Former Batman teased Ford v Ferrari co-star for missing press conference
It should be a cardinal rule of TIFF that if you are a big star who misses the press conference for your own film, it is only a matter of time before your co-stars turn on you.
Case in point is Matt Damon, who along with Christian Bale are the two megastars fronting
Ford v Ferrari, director James Mangold’s depiction of the competition between rival auto racing teams in the 1960s.
Damon was not present at the press conference held on Tuesday morning, after the film premiered, but he became a source of fun for his co-stars.
A journalist asked that since Damon is friends with George Clooney, Ben Affleck and now Bale, who have all played Batman, “is he the real Robin?”
“Is he going to cosy up to Robert Pattinson?” asked Bale, seeing where this was going. Bale mimed thinking about it and then said.
“I’m going to ponder for a little bit. For the rest of my life, and never answer it.”
“We were actually together the other night, and someone came up and congratulated him on being such a great Robin. And he had to say, ‘That was Chris O’Donnell.’ ”
When asked how he felt about people remembering him from being Batman, Bale just replied: “That’s nice.”
Getting back to Ford v Ferrari, it does actually have a showdown between Batman and Jason Bourne, and Bale was asked what it was like punching Damon in the face.
“So satisfying,” Bale quipped. “So satisfying to do. And I think he quite enjoys getting punched. He kept wanting to do it and he did it well.”
Despite all the jokes, Damon’s co-stars raved about how nice he was and how generous he was an actor in this ensemble piece, which has been regarded as a bit of a throwback film — a characterization that Mangold is embracing.
“We don’t mind if you call if old fashioned. I don’t mind. I think people miss movies that weren’t all shot entirely in a room with green (screen) backings,” Mangold said.
“I think people miss when Hollywood made movies that were large, but not necessarily for 12-year-olds. I like it. There’s no reason to shy away from it. It doesn’t mean it’s musty or stodgy.”
Audiences will get to see for themselves if they are willing to ride along with Ford V Ferrari when it opens wide on Nov. 15.