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Actor and stand-up comedian Marlon Wayans is known for his sitcom,The Wayans Bros.and films likeLittle ManandWhite Chicks. The actor is also known for his appearances in theScary Moviefranchise. While known mostly for his comedic roles, the actor also tried his hand at drama with Darren Aronofsky’s harrowing drama,Requiem for a Dream.
One of the most interesting bits of trivia for the comic and actor was that he was signed onto play Robin in Tim Burton’sBatman Returns. The dark sequel to 1989’sBatmaninitially planned to introduce Robin to the franchise, and Wayans would have a larger role in the threequel. However, plans reportedly fell through, and Wayans never played the role.
Marlon Wayans Was Supposed To Play Robin inBatman Returns
Before Christopher Nolan’sThe Dark Knighttrilogy changed the superhero genre, the previous iteration of Batman byTim Burtonalso impacted the genre in many ways. For starters, the Michal Keaton starrerBatmanwas a much darker portrayal of the superhero, as the previous versions were more kid-friendly.
However,Batmanwas a huge commercial success and earned over $411 million at the box office. The studio commissioned a sequel immediately, and Tim Burton began working onBatman Returnsalong with screenwriter Sam Hamm. While Hamm planned to follow the story of Harvey Dent and his descent to becoming Two-Face, the studio reportedly wanted Penguin as the antagonist.
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Hamm and Burton had also reportedly planned to introduce Robin in the film. Hence, Marlon Wayans was signed for the role. Wayans had gained fame for his appearances on the sketch comedy showIn Living Color,where he appeared along with his siblings. Marlon Wayans mentioned in an interview withio9that he had signed on to play the role,
“I was actually supposed to play Robin, in Batman Returns, about 15 years ago. But there was too many characters. I was cast, I was paid, and everything. I still get residual checks. Tim Burton didn’t wind up doing three, Joel Schumacher did it and he had a different vision of who Robin was. So he hired Chris O’Donnell.”
Tim Burton reportedly decided against introducing Robin asBatman Returnsalready contained The Penguin, Catwoman, and Max Shrek. Hence, Marlon Wayans never appeared in the films.
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Marlon Wayans Still Gets Paid ForBatman Returns
ThoughMarlon Wayansnever got to play Batman’s sidekick in the Burtonverse, he reportedly earned a good paycheck for the role. The actor was reportedly signed for a three-picture deal and was paid $100,000. However, the actor never got to appear in the films, despite Robin being introduced in the threequelBatman Forever.
Wayans also mentioned that he still received residual checks for the role despite not appearing inBatman Returnsor the subsequent films made by Joel Schumacher. The director chose to go in a different direction for his films and cast the then-upcoming star, Chris O’Donnell. The actor also had a more prominent role in the disastrousBatman and Robin.
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When asked if he found the botched deal a blessing in disguise due to the terrible review received byBatman ForeverandBatman and Robin, Marlon Wayans was diplomatic and joked about O’Donnell. He toldio9,
“No, look — I get why they picked Chris O’Donnell, because it would be messed up to have Batman and you’ve got Robin, and his bulge is somewhat bigger than Batman’s. Batman would have a serious problem with that.”
Marlon Wayans finally got to see his version of Robin in the comic book seriesBatman ‘89. The limited series was written by Sam Hamm and was reportedly an alternative continuation of Tim Burton’s films.
Nishanth A
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2415
Nishanth A is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on TV shows with over 2,000 articles published. He has been an entertainment journalist for the past two years and a scriptwriter at various corporations before that, working on educational content. With a Communications, English Literature, and Psychology triple major, Nishanth usually covers news and analyses on Star Trek, particularly Strange New Worlds and The Next Generation; Doctor Who, the DCU, and more.A Nolan fan, Nishanth spends his time exploring the filmographies of various directors with an auteurial style or can be found making short movies of his own. He has also contributed as a feature writer for Film Companion, focusing on the South division.
