Director Joel Schumacher says Julia Roberts was never considered for Poison Ivy in Batman & Robin

SUMMARY

Julia Roberts, known for her success in romantic comedies in the 90s, was rumored to be considered for the role of Poison Ivy in the film Batman & Robin.

However, director Joel Schumacher clarified that she was never considered for the role.

Schumacher ultimately chose Uma Thurman for the role.

Julia Roberts made her breakthrough in the 90s and was the quintessential ‘It’ girl of the decade. She headlined many successful rom-coms of the decade including Pretty Woman, My Best Friend’s Wedding, Notting Hill, and Runaway Bride. She became a huge movie star and was one of the most sought-after actresses at the time.

Julia Roberts in Notting Hill

Roberts at the time, mainly participated in romantic comedies and she rarely starred in a big-budget studio film. When Joel Schumacher’s Batman & Robin was being made in 1996, it was rumored that she was in the running for the role of Poison Ivy.

However, Schumacher recently put an end to those rumors and clarified that she was never considered for the film.

Julia Roberts Was Never Considered For the Role of Poison Ivy in Batman & Robin

Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy in Batman & Robin

Julia Roberts was a huge movie star in the 90s owing to her back-to-back successes in her romantic comedies.

She was among the most sought-after actresses at the time and she mostly did dramas and rom-coms. In 1996, director Joel Schumacher was making Batman & Robin and it was rumored that Roberts was in the running for the role of Poison Ivy.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter on the 202th anniversary of the film’s release, Schumacher addressed those rumors saying that he had a great working relationship with Roberts (having worked with her on Flatliners and Dying Young) and that she was never considered for the role of  Poison Ivy in the film. He said,

“Julia and I did two movies together back to back. We’re friends. She would have picked up the phone and called me,”

Schumacher ultimately selected Uma Thurman for the role. The film was a colossal mess and is widely considered one of the worst superhero films ever made. Schumacher not calling up Roberts to be in the film turned out to be a good thing for her career after all.

Julia Roberts’ Pretty Woman Originally Had a Different Title and a Dark Ending

Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman

Julia Roberts starred in the 1990 romantic comedy film Pretty Woman alongside Richard Gere. The film proved to be Roberts’ breakthrough role and it was also a huge box-office success at the time. However, it seems that the original script of the film had a totally different  treatment and title

Patricia Arquette and Julia Roberts appeared on Variety’s Actors on Actors series, where Arquette revealed that she auditioned for Pretty Woman which was originally titled 3000. She also talked about how the original script had a darker ending instead of the heartwarming one of the released version. She said,

“So many, many, many years ago, one of my early auditions was for a movie called 3,000. Most people don’t know that 3,000 was the original Pretty Woman script. And the ending was really heavy. I couldn’t do it then. I couldn’t do it now. Thank God it fell apart.”

The reworked film got a lighter treatment and Pretty Woman became the sweet and adorable film audiences know today, driven by the likable chemistry between Gere and Roberts.

The original treatment might not have got the same love and appreciation from audiences and it is a great thing that the makers realized and changed the film to what it is now.