The first images of Christian Bale and Jessie Buckley in the upcoming Frankenstein film, The Bride rose from the grave today. Director Maggie Gyllenhaal shared camera test footage of the actors in character on her Instagram. Gyllenhaal credited the pictures to film photographer Niko Tavernise.
Bale’s portrayal of the monster showcases a scarred face, sutures on his forehead, and a stitched-up chest embellished with a tattoo that bears the word “Hope.” In contrast, Buckley, as the titular Bride, is depicted with a bleached-blond, finger-waved hairstyle and ink splatter adorning her cheek. “Meet The Bride & Frank,” Gyllenhaal wrote alongside the images.
The studio behind the film, Warner Bros. Pictures, shared the images on X (formerly Twitter).
Gyllenhaal’s upcoming movie will depict Christian Bale’s Frankenstein monster on a quest for love, seeking a bride. According to the logline of the movie, the plot “follows a lowly Frankenstein who travels to 1930s Chicago to seek the aide of a Dr. Euphronius in creating a companion for himself. The two reinvigorate a murdered young woman and the Bride is born.”
The Internet Rails Against Christian Bale’s Tattooed Frankenstein’s Monster
Of course, denizens of the internet pulled out their pitchforks and torches for Christian Bale’s Frankenstein look.
Harkening back to the recent controversy over the look of Eric Draven in the upcoming The Crow remake, most took issue with Frankie’s “Hope” tattoo. “Yeah, Hollywood really needs to stop with the stupid “look at me I’m edgy” written word tattoo look,” one X user opined. “It says dope,” another X user quipped.
“I’m totally open to this look, but no one had script tattoos in that style back in 1930,” another Frankie fan noted. Another fan called back to Jared Leto’s much-maligned look as Joker in 2016’s Suicide Squad. “Is that a Leto Joker-esque “HOPE” tattoo on his chest?”, they wondered. “Got the Leto/Crow treatment,” another X user agreed.
Another Frankenstein fan already was coming to terms with the tattoo.”He’s made of other people’s bodies. If one of the bodies had a tattoo he will have it too. It makes sense. Not like he tattoed himself,” they reasoned.
Meanwhile, Bale, famous for radically altering his body for roles, recently hinted at an intense training routine to bulk up to play the monster. “I’ve got to get busy getting on the rack, breaking my bones, and eating lots of fertilizer or something to try and grow,” he joked to The Hollywood Reporter back in February.