Val Kilmer all the actors to have played Batman up to that point, he felt Kilmer had given the best interpretation. Film critic Leonard Maltin (who criticized the dark tone contained in "Batman Returns") complimented Kilmer's portrayal when he reviewed the film for his expanding collection of film reviews. Defenders of "Batman Forever" praised the film for portraying Batman as a more heroic, less ruthless, and more human character than in the Tim Burton films. The film also brought the film interpretation of Bruce Wayne more into line with his comic book counterpart, showing him as a socialite and a very public
George Clooney million worldwide (he appeared, but did not star, in "Gravity", which has a $723 million worldwide box office). The film inspired two sequels starring Clooney, "Ocean's Twelve" in 2004 and "Ocean's Thirteen" in 2007. In 2001, Clooney and Soderbergh co-founded Section Eight Productions, for which Grant Heslov was president of television. Clooney made his directorial debut in the 2002 film "Confessions of a Dangerous Mind", based on the autobiography of TV producer Chuck Barris. Though the film did not do well at the box office, critics stated that Clooney's directing showed promise. In 2005, Clooney starred in "Syriana", which was