Batman is back in Chicago
ABC News, WLS Channel 7 Chicago
By Janet Davies
Additional reporting by the Chicago Tribune.
VIDEO OF PRESS CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS
(video is a downloadable zip file)
June 8, 2007 - Mayor Daley gave an official welcome to the cast and crew "I'm looking forward to spending more time here," Bale said. "My wife was born in Chicago, so I'd like to get to know it more.at city hall. The 'Dark Knight' will be all over town for the next three months. It is the biggest movie project that Chicago has ever hosted.
Filmmakers were thoroughly seduced by Chicago's landscape when they shot "Batman Begins" in Chicago back in 2004. They couldn't wait to get back for more.
"I also fell in love very much with the architecture of the city," said director Christopher Nolan.
The new Batman movie is expected to bring $45 million into the city's economy.
"Millions are spent for the local service industries, in addition to hiring 250 day players and a couple thousand extras," said Mayor Daley.
Christian Bale returns as Batman, and Bale's wife was born in Chicago. The actor says he's happy to be back in his distinctive wardrobe.
"We tend to shoot at night like some kind of covert operation," he said. "So, we have minimal people actually seeing me in that way. But I'm sure they look and think 'Who the hell is that freak?' when they do come across me! Afterall, that should be the point because Batman is meant to strike fear into people's hearts. So, if they just thought, 'Yeah, yeah, it's Batman,' then it wouldn't work."
When the film crew was in Chicago in April, a brief fire broke out at the former main post office.
"We were shooting outside and had to get cameras out of the way so the fire engines could get there," Nolan said.
"I'm looking forward to spending more time here," Bale said. "My wife was born in Chicago, so I'd like to get to know it more.
But being the Dark Knight has its downside. "I'm not really looking forward to wearing a black rubber suit in the summertime in humid Chicago," he said. "If you see a pool of sweat through the city, follow it and you will find me."
"The Dark Knight" is expected to hit theaters in July of 2008.