Matthew Rudoy is one of ScreenRantThe film and television news editors of . He covers film and television news, with a focus on major franchises like Star Wars, The boys, And Game of Thrones. He wrote lists for ScreenRant from 2017 to 2022, became a news editor in 2023, a senior editor in 2024, and a senior editor in 2025.
The next American Psycho the remake is a “bold choice” according to Christian Bale.
Bale played iconic serial killer and investment banker Patrick Bateman in the original version of the film released in 2000, based on the 1991 novel by Bret Easton Ellis. Challengers And After the hunt director Luca Guadagnino shared during the Lionsgate panel at Cinemacon 2025 that he is working on a new American Psycho adaptation, with Scott Z. Burns writing the screenplay.
At the premiere of Bale’s new film The Bride!, The Hollywood Reporter asked him if he had any young actors in mind to play Patrick Bateman. The Oscar winner shared that he’s open-minded about the possibility of someone else taking on the role, but clarifies that he knows nothing about the project and calls it ” “bold” effort. Check out Bale’s response below:
“Anyone who wants to try it, give it a pop. I loved doing it with [director] Mary Harron so many years ago, fantastic memories of it all. Bold choice for anyone to try to make a — I don’t know if they’re doing a remake or what, I don’t know anything else. But good luck to them, I like brave people.
Bale’s comments come shortly after Ellis admitted that new American Psychothe cast proved difficult, because “A few renowned actors, whom I cannot name, refused.” And “I think maybe it’s because they don’t want to be in Christian Bale’s shoes.” The author emphasized that “this movie is completely different from the Mary Harron movie from 2000. It’s a completely different version and it won’t be anything like that movie..”
Robert Pattinson, Jacob Elordi, Austin Butler and Margot Robbie as a gender-swapped version of the character were rumored to play the new Patrick Bateman, but most of those rumors have been debunked and the role has still not been officially cast. 26 years later, American Psycho is still widely considered one of the Christian Bale’s best performanceswhich, as Ellis points out, made it all the more daunting to bring a new actor into the role, even if it meant being a fresh take on the story.
In ScreenRantIt is American Psycho goodbyeGrant Hermanns explains that “One of the most important things American Psycho had to tackle was choosing someone we could tolerate watching, regardless of their actions, and Harron certainly hit the nail on the head with Bale.” In addition to starring Bale and being directed by Mary Harron, the original film’s cast includes Justin Theroux, Josh Lucas, Chloë Sevigny, Reese Witherspoon, Bill Sage, Jared Leto and Willem Dafoe.
Bale not involved in the new American Psychoaudiences can instead see him in Maggie Gyllenhaal’s film The Bride!which hits theaters on March 6, in which he plays Frankenstein’s monster, known in this story as Frank. Bale has also been cast in Michael Mann’s long-awaited film Heat 2although the character he plays remains a secret, and he plays Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis in Madin which Nicolas Cage plays the titular NFL coach.
- Release date
- April 14, 2000
- Runtime
- 101 minutes
- Director
- Mary Harron
- Writers
- Bret Easton Ellis, Mary Harron, Guinevere Turner