EXCLUSIVE: Radar Reveals Why Biggest Stars in Cinema are 'Running Scared' From Playing One of Literature's Greatest American Psychos

Bret Easton Ellis has revealed some of Hollywood's biggest stars are running scared from stepping into the blood-spattered shoes of Patrick Bateman, with several high-profile actors quietly turning down the lead in a new Bret Easton Ellis adaptation of American Psycho.

And RadarOnline.com can reveal the real reason the A-listers are snubbing the iconic role.

Ellis' 1991 American Psycho novel – a savage and extravagantly violent satire of 1980s excess, greed, celebrity culture, and misogyny – is being reimagined by director Luca Guadagnino and screenwriter Scott Z. Burns.

But as the project gathers momentum, Ellis has disclosed casting has proven unexpectedly fraught, with major names balking at taking on the role immortalized by Christian Bale in Mary Harron's 2000 adaptation of his now iconic book. The new version, backed by Lionsgate, has been described by its creators as a radically fresh take on the controversial source material.

Speaking on his podcast, Ellis said: "A couple of high-profile actors, whom I can't name, have turned it down. I think maybe because they don't want to be in the shoes of Christian Bale."

But industry sources tell us the reluctance of A-listers to get involved extends beyond comparisons to Bale.

One senior studio insider said: "There is real anxiety among A-list actors about attaching themselves to a property that is routinely labeled misogynistic and ultra-violent, without understanding the nuance and pitch-black satire behind it. In a now sanitized, cancel-culture riddled Hollywood, playing a character who embodies un-woke, women-hating attitudes is seen as reputationally reckless."

Another movie insider familiar with the upcoming project added: "The fear of big names agreeing to get involved is not about the craft or living up to Christian's example – it is about the backlash against the apparent attitudes in the book. Stars are hyper-aware of social media storms and brand partnerships. They worry that even a satirical portrayal of extreme violence and toxic masculinity could be misread and weaponized against them."

Rumors Margot Robbie might take on a gender-swapped version of Bateman were recently dismissed as a "non-starter," underscoring how the new film will retain its male antihero.

The story follows Bateman, a wealthy Manhattan investment banker whose slick life masks psychopathic violence, as his obsession with status spirals into brutality and fractured reality.