Michael Fassbender is an incredibly well-known and talented actor. He has starred in many massively successful projects like The Killer, Prometheus, Inglourious Basterds, and most well-known, perhaps, his work in the X-Men franchise. Through these works, he has made a name for himself as an extremely well-versed and diverse actor, having some of the most captivating performances in the industry. Through this skill, he has been nominated for an Oscar twice in his career, once in the category of Best Supporting Actor for his work in 12 Years a Slave, then in the category of Best Actor for his work in Steve Jobs.
It is interesting to think that Fassbender was nominated for an Academy Award for his work in Steve Jobs when it was an extremely criticized choice for him to be chosen to play the role. Many believed that others were better suited for the role, for instance, The Dark Knight actor, Christian Bale, who was also in the running to play the character.
Christian Bale Was Supposed To Play Steve Jobs
It is quite common for biggest-scale films to have multiple actors in consideration for roles before finally settling on someone. This holds especially true for productions that feature real-life, popular figures, with fans wanting to make sure the actor who portrays their beloved figure is the perfect fit for them. This is what happened in the case of the 2015 biopic, Steve Jobs. When the news was announced that the film was being made, there were also talks that the extremely talented and respected, Christian Bale, could, perhaps play the titular role.
While this stayed in the media for quite some time, it was later announced that Bale was no longer interested in playing this role. A source close to this stated that the reason for this was the fact that the actor was conflicted about playing the role of the Apple CEO. This could also have something to do with the fact that Ashton Kutcher, who had previously portrayed Jobs in a 2013 film of the same name, was absolutely shredded by critics over his performance.
The Role Went To Michael Fassbender Instead
The role ultimately ended up going to Michael Fassbender. This, however, did not come easy to the actor, however, as there were many questions raised by audiences when the news was initially announced. The reason for this was the fact that the actor did not resemble Steve Jobs much, at least not as much as Christian Bale does. According to The Guardian, it would seem that the actor, himself felt this way at some point, as he revealed during a press conference at the New York Film Festival.
“Obviously I don’t look anything like Steve Jobs,” he said. “That was the first thing I said to Danny. I said: ‘Christian Bale looks a lot more like Steve Jobs than me.’
Fassbender revealed that he, himself understands that he does not much look like Jobs. Adding to this, he revealed that when he was first told that he had gotten the role, his first thought was the fact that Bale looked more like the business magnate and inventor than he does. It was a good thing, however, that Fassbender chose to stick with the project as he was nominated for an Academy Award for his work in it.
