"Dark Knight Rises" star Christian Bale was reportedly shoved then chased by Chinese authorities on Thursday.

In China on Thursday, Batman himself, Christian Bale, went through a real-life version of a scene from "The Dark Knight" where Batman miraculously escapes from authorities in Hong Kong. CNN reports that "The Dark Knight Rises" star was on his way to Dongshigu Village in eastern China with a crew from CNN to meet with Chen Guangcheng, a blind civil rights activist in the People's Republic of China who has been there in soft detention since his release from prison in September 2010. When Bale and the CNN crew arrived, he was accosted by four plainclothes officers who chased him out of the village and onto the road.

"What I really wanted to do was to meet the man, shake his hand and say what an inspiration he is," Bale told CNN. When Bale approached Chen Guangchen's village, the four men blocking the path began shoving the actor (caught on tape by CNN) after he requested to see the civil rights leader. The men then attempted to drag Bale away from the camera crew. The physical scuffle eventually turned to a high-speed car chase, where Bale and the crew were chased down country roads for nearly 40 minutes that ended with a broken car and damaged camera.

Bale was in China for the premiere of "The Flowers of War," reportedly the most expensive Chinese film in history. Bale plays a mortician in the drama, set in the 1930s, who tries to save a group of schoolgirls from Japanese soldiers. During his time filming the movie, he heard of Chen's story through news reports and decided to visit the civil rights leader on his return for the premiere. The actor hoped to raise awareness of the Chinese civil rights movement and Chen himself. "Flowers of War" hits in China on December 16. Bale's final movie as Batman, "Dark Knight Rises," is slated for June 20, 2012.

Stay tuned to CBR News for more information on Christian Bale's escape as it develops.