While many vocal DC Comics “fans” were creating and signing petitions to protest Robert Pattinson’s then-alleged casting in Matt Reeves’ The Batman, the jokes that followed the official news were refreshingly positive. There may be a specific reason for this, and a new poll out from The Hollywood Reporter seems to have pinpointed it.
According to the poll, which was conducted for THR by the Morning Consult marketing research company, Pattinson’s casting was far more favored than Nicholas Hoult’s among the younger target demos:
Some 42 percent of those in the 18-29 age bracket are in favor of the casting as opposed to 30 percent in the same group that prefer Hoult, already known to superhero movie fans in Fox’s X-Men franchise. (The number spikes further, reaching 48 percent, if the age range is limited to 18-22.) Yet Hoult manages to outrank Pattinson slightly among older audiences, including in the 45-54 and 55-64 demographics.
And yes, the demographic range evidenced by these results are due in large part to Pattinson’s involvement in the Twilight franchise. As the co-founder of a fanzine dedicated to the actor told THR, “Twilight fans are totally on board. I think their dedication to Rob is the kind that means fans who weren’t Batman fans before are now going to devour all things Batman, in support of Rob.”
That’s not to say that Warner Bros., DC Comics and Reeves only settled on Pattinson because of the devotion of his younger Twilight fans. Though he and Hoult were reportedly facing off in the end, Pattinson was long thought to be the frontrunner. He even auditioned and shot screen tests while wearing the Batman suit. The man put in the hours and all that time paid off … in yet another cinematic treatment of Thomas and Martha Wayne’s murder.
(Via The Hollywood Reporter)