5. Batman – Batman & Robin (1997)
Batman is one of those movie characters who has been recast several times, but we’re only here to talk about the absolute worst. There have been many iterations of the Dark Knight over the years, but none stand out as starkly as George Clooney’s. (Yes, that was a thinly-veiled reference to the Bat-Nips themselves protruding offensively through an apparently metal suit.)
Michael Keaton was excellent in the role, but was replaced with Val Kilmer. Disappointing though Batman Forever might have been, Kilmer was at least part-way respectable as the Caped Crusader. Then, for 1997’s Batman & Robin, the role was recast, and George Clooney stuffed his handsome face into the cowl. It was bad. Very bad.
For starters, there’s the aforementioned Bat-Nips. But the film itself was also poorly written, tonally jumbled, and thoroughly idiotic. Gone was Kilmer’s brooding Batman and in his place stood a hefty-nippled shadow of the former hero (who was himself a shadow of the one before him). Thankfully, Clooney was then replaced by Christian Bale for Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, and we never looked back. Still, George Clooney is the worst Batman actor, and the recasting was one of Hollywood’s worst ever.