Why does George Clooney still consider Batman & Robin his biggest career failure? Actor gets candid about his infamous 1990s superhero film

George Clooney opened up about Batman & Robin during the premiere of his film, Jay Kelly, in Los Angeles on November 11, 2025.

In an interview with People magazine, he said that the 1997 film was his biggest career failure. He reflected on how the film’s creative failure was the turning point that made him realize the importance of choosing scripts carefully. He told the outlet:

“Batman & Robin! I learned a lot [from] that one. You don't learn from succeeding, you learn from failing, and then you have to figure it out along the way, so it’s helpful.”

In the film, Clooney stars as Batman, and Chris O’Donnell stars as Dick Grayson, Batman’s crime-fighting partner, Robin. The other cast members were Uma Thurman, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Alicia Silverstone, and more. Directed by Joel Schumacher, the film was the fourth and final installment in the Warner Bros. Batman film series.

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George Clooney reflects on his performance in “Batman & Robin”: “It actually hurts to watch”

George Clooney has opened up numerous times about his role as Batman in the 1997 film Batman & Robin often reflecting on the experience with a mix of humor and honesty.

In a December 2020 interview with The Hollywood Reporter while discussing his SiriusXM show with Howard Stern the Batman actor shared his thoughts about the film. He said

“I couldn’t have done that one differently. It’s a big machine, that thing. You have to remember at that point, I was just an actor getting an acting job. I wasn’t the guy who could greenlight a movie.”

He told him:

“It’s so bad that it actually hurts to watch. You’ll be flipping the channels and it’ll just pop up and I’m like ‘Oh no, no, no.'”

George Clooney has also spoken humorously and critically about wearing the Batman suit in Batman & Robin. He described it as one of an actor’s worst nightmares because of its heaviness and rigidity.

After Clooney the next actor to replace him as Batman was Ben Affleck who starred in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. He continued his role in other DCEU films such as Suicide Squad Justice League and The Flash.

Meanwhile Christian Bale played the role of Batman in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy including films such as Batman Begins The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises.

George Clooney portrays the character of Jay Kelly in his upcoming film titled Jay Kelly. Directed by Noah Baumbach, the film also stars Adam Sandler as Ron Sukenick, Emily Mortimer as Candy, Riley Keough as Jessica Kelly, Eve Hewson, and Greta Gerwig as Lois Sukenick.

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Clooney started his acting career in the early 1980s. He was influenced by his father, Nick Clooney’s career in media, and initially considered working behind the camera. He moved to Los Angeles to try his luck in television and films. His breakthrough role came in 1984 starring as Dr Doug Ross in the NBC medical drama series ER which ran from 1994 to 2000.

On the personal front Clooney has been married to Amal Clooney since 2014. They share two children twins Alexander and Ella Clooney.

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