Almost a decade ago, Father Mike Schmitz said he nearly played Robin in Batman Forever—and the internet is rediscovering the story all over again.
It sounds kind of like a rumor made for social media: before becoming one of the world's most recognizable Catholic priests, Father Mike Schmitz says he auditioned for Robin in the 1995 superhero film Batman Forever.
The story, originally published by ChurchPOP in January 2017, is circulating widely online again in 2026. It tells of how Father Mike publicly recounted at FOCUS’s SEEK conference in 2017 that he had advanced deep into auditions for the role:
“I was almost cast as Robin in Batman Forever. I made it to the final cut of the auditions,” he told the audience.
The role of Dick Grayson/Robin ultimately went to Chris O’Donnell, opposite Val Kilmer’s Batman. Batman Forever was released in 1995 and also starred Tommy Lee Jones, Jim Carrey and Nicole Kidman.
But Fr. Mike’s Hollywood near-miss did not stop with Gotham City.
According to his retelling, the positive audition led casting staff to ask whether he would read for another film then in development: Hackers, the 1995 cyber-thriller that became a cult favorite.
“The audition went really well, so after I auditioned for Robin, they said, ‘Would you want to audition for another movie we’re casting?’ And I said, ‘Sure.’ So they said, ‘Ok.’ [We] act out the scene, they filmed it. They were like, ‘That was so much fun; we’re going to submit you, we think you’d be good as that character.’
The movie was called Hackers, and I auditioned for the male lead. I didn’t get it.
But it’s interesting because the male lead played opposite the female lead, and the female lead was played by Angelina Jolie. And those two people ended up marrying each other. So, I could have been the first ex-Mr. Angelina Jolie. That could have been part of my story.”
Jonny Lee Miller and Jolie later married after meeting through Hackers, before divorcing in 1999—making Father Mike’s punchline technically rooted in a very real bit of ’90s millennial movie history.
Despite nearly landing not one but TWO roles in Hollywood, Fr. Mike won in the end. He is now well-known for something else, bringing people, especially the younger generations, to God. And no one can argue that saving souls is so much more rewarding and important than acting.
However, it’s still fun to see that his charm and charisma have always been apparent to those around him, even to those in Hollywood, and that he was always destined for the limelight.
We are grateful he pursued his vocation to the priesthood! Thank you Fr. Mike Schmitz!