Baumgarten viewed Bale's work as a continuance of his "masterful command of yet another American personality type." For the 2006 film The Prestige, Bale reunited with Batman Begins director Nolan, who said that Bale was cast after offering himself for the part. It is based on the novel of the same name by Christopher Priest about a rivalry between two Victorian era magicians, whom Bale and Hugh Jackman play in the film. While it attracted acclaim from critics, the film performed more modestly during its run in theatres, earning $110 million against a $40 million budget. In his review for The New York Times, A. O. Scott highlighted Bale's "fierce inwardness" and called his performance "something to savor". Bale next starred in the 2007 drama films I'm Not There, portraying two incarnations of singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, and in 3:10 to Yuma, playing a justice-seeking cattleman. He characterised his Dylan incarnations as "two men on a real quest for truth" and attributed his interest in 3:10 to Yuma to his affinity for films where he gets to "just be dirty and crawling in the mud". Bale reprised the role of Batman in Nolan's Batman Begins sequel The Dark Knight, which received acclaim and became the fourth film to gross more than $1 billion worldwide upon its July 2008 release. He did many of his own stunts, including one that involved standing on the roof of the Sears Tower in Chicago. The Dark Knight has been regarded by critics as the best superhero film. The Dark Knight trilogy completion and acclaim (2009–2012) In February 2008, Warner Bros. announced that Bale would star as rebellion leader John Connor in the post-apocalyptic action film Terminator Salvation, directed by McG, who cited Bale as "the most credible actor of his generation". In February 2009, an audio recording of a tirade on the film's set in July 2008 involving Bale was released. It captured him directing profanities at the film's cinematographer Shane Hurlbut, who walked onto the set during the filming of a scene acted by Bale and Bryce Dallas Howard, and culminated in Bale threatening to quit the film if Hurlbut was not fired. Several colleagues in the film industry defended Bale, attributing the incident to his dedication to acting. Bale publicly apologised in February 2009, calling the outburst "inexcusable" and his behaviour "way out of order" and affirming to have made amends with Hurlbut.