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The original American Psycho director has had her say on the upcoming reboot rumors, vowing no one else could echo Christian Bale’s efforts in the iconic film.
Mary Harron’s take on Bret Easton Ellis’ satirical novel was released 25 years ago, on April 14, 2000, with the Batman icon leading the star-studded cast as Wall Street yuppie-turned possible serial killer Patrick Bateman.
In recent months, it has been claimed the movie will be getting the remake treatment, helmed by filmmaker Luca Guadagnino, with Austin Butler and Patrick Schwarzenegger among those linked to the main role.
During an appearance at the 25-year anniversary screening at Tribeca Film Festival, Mary spoke to Metro about the reboot speculation, and who could possibly step into Patrick’s designer shoes.
When asked whether American Psycho needs to be remade, she told us: ‘I personally don’t, but obviously that’s how I would think.
‘It could surprise me, and be completely phenomenal, and something I would never have imagined…’
Discussing who she could see taking over from Christian, she continued: ‘No, I really can’t [imagine anyone else as Patrick], because also to me, it’s just fixed in my mind. I can’t reimagine it in that way.
‘But good luck to them. I’m just glad… It’s amazing to me that people are still this interested 25 years on – and more successful now than it was 25 years ago.
”When it first came out, audiences didn’t know what to think about it. I remember in the very first screening at Sundance, people didn’t know whether it was supposed to be funny or not.
‘Now I think people can enjoy a lot more because they know, “Yes, it’s okay to laugh at this!” Parts are supposed to be funny.’
Mary also shared her surprise at how relevant her take on American Psycho still is, 25 years on – suggesting that we’re ‘seeing’ similar themes in society today.
‘I would never have imagined [the relevancy today],’ she added. ‘It’s so funny, I was in a bookstore and I saw there was a game, some weird American Psycho board game. I don’t love that, but it’s like, “Okay, that’s strange.”
‘It’s definitely taken on a scary life I would never have imagined. The film is the film, it’s not going to change, it’s made, and I’m glad that people seem to get something out of it.
‘I’m sad that, in a way, that it has remained so relevant, because that means that a certain heartlessness of the culture, this validation of really psycho businessmen… We’re seeing it right now.’
American Psycho, set in the 80s, has gone on to become a cult classic despite a grim plot.
Christian stole every scene as Patrick Bateman, alongside Reese Witherspoon, Jared Leto, Justin Theroux and Chloe Sevigny.
Despite appearing in a string of projects before the creepy Wall Street banker, it is still considered to be one of his breakthrough roles before he popped up in the Machinist, the Batman trilogy and the Prestige.
Shedding light on his early career in a 2022 interview, he revealed that he was earning so little at that time, he feared that he could lose his home.
‘I’d taken so long trying to do it, and they had paid me the absolute minimum they were legally allowed to pay me,’ he told GQ.
‘And I had a house that I was sharing with my dad and my sister and that was getting repossessed.
‘So the first thing was: “Holy crap. I’ve got to get a bit of money,” because I’ve got American Psycho done, but I remember one time sitting in the make-up trailer and the make-up artists were laughing at me because I was getting paid less than any of them.
‘And so that was my motivation after that. It was just: “I got to get enough that the house doesn’t get repossessed.”’
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