Christian Bale Recalls Meeting Donald Trump: ‘He Thought I Was Bruce Wayne’

By Erin Nyren

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – With Christian Bale‘s latest film, “Vice,” a political dramedy, it’s inevitable ties will be drawn between the film and the current political administration and its chief, President Donald Trump.

On the red carpet for the premiere of “,” Bale, who stars as former Vice President Dick Cheney, shared that he met the current president while filming “The Dark Knight Rises” back in 2011.

“I met him, one time,” he said Variety’s Marc Malkin. “We were filming on ‘Batman’ in Trump Tower and he said, ‘Come on up to the office.’”

“I think he thought I was Bruce Wayne,” Bale joked, “because I was dressed as Bruce Wayne. So he talked to me like I was Bruce Wayne and I just went along with it, really. It was quite entertaining. I had no idea at the time that he would think about running for president.”

Bale also talked his astonishing weight gain for the role of Cheney, explaining that he consulted a nutritionist this time around rather than “winging it,” as he did for his other transformative roles (Bale lost 63 lbs for his role in 2004’s “The Machinist,” then gained 100 lbs back within six months to play Bruce Wayne in “Batman Begins.”)

“This is the first time I actually did go to a nutritionist cause I’m starting to feel my mortality,” he said. “I did decide, ‘You know what, I might die, so maybe I should go to see someone who actually knows what they’re talking about instead of just winging it,’ which is what I’ve always done.”

“Vice” hits theaters Dec. 25.