In a move that sent shockwaves through the comic community, Christopher Nolan asked a fairly unknown Bale if he would pick up the disheveled bat cape and help him revive the failing Batman franchise.

Not one to shy away from a challenge, Bale eagerly accepted and went back to the gym. He had hardly any time to transform himself from bare-bones factory worker to a muscular 200 pounds. The film was a massive critical and commercial success – Bale had officially made it.