Movies - TV
The Dark Knight’s Most Famous Line Was Total Gibberish To Christopher Nolan
By RAFAEL MOTAMAYOR
Despite coming out over 15 years ago, “The Dark Knight” remains one of the best superhero films ever made, thanks partly to its fantastic and well-written dialogue.
However, Harvey Dent’s line, “You either die a hero or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain,” left Christopher Nolan somewhat confused when he first saw it.
Nolan explained to Deadline, “My brother [Jonathan] wrote it. It kills me because it's the line that most resonates. At the time, I didn't even understand it.”
He continued, “I read it in [Jonathan's] draft, and I was like, 'All right, I'll keep it in there, but I don't really know what it means. Is that really a thing?'”
As time passed, the director would reflect on the line and come to understand it. Nolan shared, “Over the years since that film's come out, it just seems truer and truer.”
Nolan added, “In this story, it's absolutely that. Build them up, tear them down. It's the way we treat people.” While he didn’t understand it then, Nolan thankfully kept the line.