Rigan Machado On The Batman
If you ever felt stupid, just remember that there are fans who thought that Robert Pattinson didn’t work out at all for his Batman role. I get it that some people hated the Twilight series and their portrayal of Vampires as waxed, sparkly super-models. But that was over a decade ago and Robert Pattinson has helmed a wide spectrum of difficult roles especially in The Lighthouse (2019), The Devil All The Time (2020), and Christopher Nolan’s Tenet (2020) which garnered him universal acclaim.
He is on his way to place himself as one of the best actors of all time. And for the fans to take his jokes of him not working out for his upcoming The Batman (2022) movie shows how insecure a section of the comic book fanbase has become.
His martial arts trainer Rigan Machado had this to say about Robert Pattinson’s progress:
“I started training Robert Pattinson, who received a proposal to be Batman. “Rigan, give me some training there”. He was thin (and asked): “How do I get strong?” I said, “You have to do the nutrition and work with weight. He trained with me jiu-jitsu for Christ’s sake and got loose. Then I lost contact because he had to go to England, where he lives. He took about 20 kg of muscle. And he is a good actor. I think he will be one of the best “Batman”. He was bound, he will be the best Batman in history. He’s going to do Batman 1, 2, 3, 4… This Batman is cool, he’s kind of dark, he’s not that nice guy. It’s going to be a more violent movie. It’s going to be the most violent Batman you have there.”
If anyone doubts Rigan Machado’s words as merely hyping his students, know that he is an 8th degree red and black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and a protégé of the BJJ legend Carlos Gracie.
He has trained:
- Dan Inosanto, the training partner of Bruce Lee.
- Erik Paulson, the first American MMA fighter to win World Light-Heavy Weight Shooto Title in Japan.
- John Will, an Australian martial artist who was one of the first 12 foreign nationals to earn a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
- Chris Haueter, a 5th-degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
- Cindy Omatsu, the first Asian-American and 1st woman outside of Brazil to be promoted to black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Ashton Kutcher, Vin Diesel, Wiz Khalifa, Bryan Callen, Charlie Hunnam, and Chuck Norris, who needs no introduction are some of his students, to name a few. Obviously, in his own right, Rigan Machado is not new training Hollywood biggies.
Although packing on 20 Kg of muscles in such a small period seems far-fetched even by Hollywood standards, not a problem a little bit of CGI can’t solve. The hardcore action sequences of Batman in his iconic suit are usually done by stunt doubles; it will be nice to see Bruce Wayne in his custom-made party wear choking out goons as quickly and silently as possible using his BJJ.
What more bragging rights could Robert Pattinson get if he performed his own lethal fighting sequences when he is not using his Dark Knight persona? The Batman is set to be released in theatres on March 4, 2022. To know more about The Batman, make sure to check our we
