Why Halle Berry Doesn't View Catwoman As An Utter Failure
There's no denying that Halle Berry's "Catwoman" was a spectacular failure — critically, commercially, etc. — but it's still been incredibly frustrating to watch Berry try to defend the film over the years. For the record, there's very little to defend, but did Berry really deserve as much flack as she got? The actor has gotten the worst rap out of anyone involved in the picture: few have asked the now-retired director, Pitof, how he feels about the flop, though screenwriter John Rogers has since said his piece on why the story suffered so.
Berry, for her part, has always handled her stint as Catwoman with grace. After "winning" the Razzie award for Worst Actress in a Motion Picture, she brought along the Oscar she'd won just years prior for "Monster's Ball"; even recited her Oscars speech to the letter. The actress later admitted that she took the role in the hopes of opening the door for Black stars in tentpole films ... and depending on who you ask, it sort of did? Either way, "Catwoman" may have failed in the moment, but from Berry's point of view, failure isn't always a bad thing.
'It wasn't a failure for me'
Berry addressed the effects of "Catwoman" once more at the 2018 Matrix Awards. While accepting her award, Berry admitted that she was warned against taking the role full-stop. "Everybody around me said, 'Girl, don't do it. It's going to be the death of you. It's going to end your career,'" Berry said.
While "Catwoman" bombed miserably — and likely made it even harder for the actor to be taken seriously — Berry didn't view it as a failure. "While it failed to most people, it wasn't a failure for me because I met so many interesting people that I wouldn't have met otherwise, I learned two forms of martial arts and I learned not what to do." Plus, she made "a s*** load of money that changed my life."
Time has been kind, in a way, to "Catwoman." It's since been reevaluated with the same regard as Joel Schumacher's "Batman" movies: yes, they're campy, but somebody out there likes them. There are merits to "Catwoman," if you look (very) closely. For Berry, at least, it offered a lesson in trusting the process:
"Following your intuition doesn't always mean you're going to be successful or win the prize, but it means you're always going to learn the exact lesson or get the exact accolades or the exact check that you're supposed to get for yourself. Never compare that to anyone else."