The Batman actor Robert Pattinson caused controversy in comic book movie circles when he appeared to suggest during a recent interview that getting too buff for a role sets a bad precedent and that he had not been exercising during the lockdown.

While the actor is known to troll audiences through his interviews, many Batman fans were upset thinking he was not taking the role seriously enough. But a new interview for the magazine Healthy for Men reveals that the actor has actually been working out hard. Pages from the interview were shared by Twitter user Pattinson360, with the following message.

"New interview with #TheBatman star, Robert Pattinson. He talks about his workout regime, enjoying a challenge, real magic, his relationship, and living in London."

From the interview, it is clear that Pattinson's earlier hints that he has not been working out for his Batman role are not true. The actor's training regimen is broken down into a series of sections designed to add mass, speed, and flexibility to his physique.

GYM - Getting abs, fast, has involved a regular five-minute cardio workout, then a circuit of bicycle crunches, dumbbell side bends, double crunches, and a superman - with three sets of 25 reps per move.

RUNNING - Pattinson will run 5-10km, three of four times per week.

OUTDOORS - As well as hitting the gym, Pattinson has been doing military-style sandbag routines on the beach. He's also boxing and has always been an advocate of long walks as a way of loosening up and freeing the mind.

DIET - The actor has cut down on alcohol and has stripped back on processed meat and fried foods as a way of accelerating his physical transformation.

It is worth noting that the workout routine the actor is following is not geared towards adding dramatic amounts of mass to his frame, in the manner of Ben Affleck's Batman in the DCEU or Tom Hardy's Bane. Instead, Pattinson's Batman physique appears to lay greater stress on a lithe, agile frame for the Dark Knight.

This falls in line with what we know about The Batman so far, and it being set in the early days of Batman's career as a crime fighter. Director Matt Reeves has also stressed that his take on the character will emphasize his detective skills, and not just portray him as a bruiser.

Pattinson has come in for extreme amounts of scrutiny as the next actor to don the black cowl of one of the most popular characters in fiction. In the same interview, he admits to his going after the role of Batman as ambitious on his part, especially because of the physical element involved.

"Ultimately, I'm not afraid of failure. It's fair to say I'm a little bit more ambitious in the roles I'm choosing now. A few years ago, I would have run a mile from anything with a physical edge."

The Batman is currently awaiting clearance to resume production, and has had its release date pushed back to 1 October 2021.