The official The Dark Knight Rises thread...

[DEKO]

The Dark Knight Rises: Anne Hathaway is Catwoman + Tom Hardy is Bane (confirmed)!!!
Well, that settles that, then. Warner Bros. has just announced that Anne Hathaway has won the race to star in The Dark Knight Rises... as Selina Kyle. Also known as Catwoman. “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Anne Hathaway, who will be a fantastic addition to our ensemble as we complete our story," said director Christopher Nolan in a press release.

And, in the same release, WB and Christopher Nolan confirmed that the role Tom Hardy will play in the eagerly-awaited Batman threequel is Bane, the muscle-bound super-steroidal freak who, in the comics, once broke Batman's back. “I am delighted to be working with Tom again and excited to watch him bring to life our new interpretation of one of Batman’s most formidable enemies.”

This represents a flood of information for a Christopher Nolan Bat-movie, and gives us plenty to chew on. We can't wait to see Nolan's take on the twisted relationship between Batman and the capricious Cat - and Hathaway certainly has the chops, and the curves, to fill out the catsuit. Intriguingly, Catwoman isn't mentioned in the WB press release, but with Nolan openly admitting that this is the end of his Bat-tale, it's hard to imagine that Kyle won't become Catwoman at some point in the film.

Still, heck of a year for Hathaway, what with this and her gig hosting the Oscars...

Bane is more interesting. Once again, Nolan is going down the multiple villains route - as he did with Scarecrow and Ra's Al Ghul in Batman Begins, and The Joker and Two-Face in The Dark Knight. But we're intrigued by what he and the magnificent Hardy will bring to the role of Bane, a character who could be laughable in the wrong hands (see Batman & Robin for proof). Will this Bane be more cerebral than the grunting hulk of Schumacherville? Or will he represent the first very real physical threat to Christian Bale's Bat in the trilogy?

Update: As some have pointed out, Bane in the comics is far from a grunting hulk, but a schemer who just happens to have more muscles than your average issue of Men's Health. So, when it comes to battling The Bat, he could have the perfect combination of brains and brawn...

So, what do you think? Happy with these choices? Has the Caped Crusader got enough on his plate with Catwoman and Bane to contend with, or does Nolan have another villainous surprise up his sleeve?

The Dark Knight Rises is out on July 20, 2012.


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[JohnnyL]

  The reaction to this so far, seems very mixed.  Personally, I think this is great news.  Maybe this time we can see a big screen version of Bane that takes him seriously.  In the comics he was one of Batman's most formidable foes, but in the "Batman and Robin" movie, they made him out to be mindless muscle working for Mr. Freeze.  I think most of the people who read the "Knightfall" series of Batman comics would agree the character was completely wasted.

[Fraxxx]

Tom Hardy is a damn good actor, I'm just a little concerned about his size. He was a beast in "Bronson" but I'm not sure how he'll look against Bale in Batman shape. Acting-wise definitely a good choice though.

[Episcop Cruel Cvrle]

Im very happy with Tom Hardy, he is incredible actor, not so happy with Anne Hathaway, she looks a bit empty, something is missing for me when it comes to her acting and appearance.

[Javier]

It was believed that the choice came down between Keira Knightly, Jessica Biel, or Anne Hathaway.  Anne Hathaway although not the prettiest is by far the best actress on that short list.  She's easily one of the best actresses under the age of 30 out there.  The only problem with her is that she keeps coming out in all of these romantic comedies or other shitty movies like that. If you need to be convinced about her acting, check out Rachel Getting Married.  The film she should have won a Best Actress Oscar for but the Academy decided to give the life time Best Actress award to Kate Winslet that year.

[Shallow]

I'll reserve all judgment until I see it, but I'm not excited much. However I wouldn't be no matter what the news. I'm already prepared for this to be the worst of the three, I just hope it's still good. I don't know how any aspect of the Bane origin from the comics will fit into this film and expect a full revamp of the character. Some character traits might stay but what do you do with his motive; have him be a man born in a prison that wants to rid the world of prisons and thus breaks open Arkham asylum? They already did the inmates escape the asylum storyline.

[DEKO]

Im very happy with Tom Hardy, he is incredible actor, not so happy with Anne Hathaway, she looks a bit empty, something is missing for me when it comes to her acting and appearance.

I'll reserve all judgment until I see it, but I'm not excited much. However I wouldn't be no matter what the news. I'm already prepared for this to be the worst of the three, I just hope it's still good. I don't know how any aspect of the Bane origin from the comics will fit into this film and expect a full revamp of the character. Some character traits might stay but what do you do with his motive; have him be a man born in a prison that wants to rid the world of prisons and thus breaks open Arkham asylum? They already did the inmates escape the asylum storyline.

Remember when Heath was announced as the Joker...? Everybody was talking shit like "That gay-ass from Brokeback Mountain? This can't be good!" and see what happened... he delivered one of the best acting performances ever!
What I'm trying to say is I don't like Anne Hathaway either for this role, and even Catwoman/Bane should've been replaced by other villains (Black Mask/Hugo Strange) in my opinion... but with Nolan as the director I'm not gonna doubt the result. It's gonna be great! IN NOLAN WE TRUST!

[JohnnyL]

It was believed that the choice came down between Keira Knightly, Jessica Biel, or Anne Hathaway.  Anne Hathaway although not the prettiest is by far the best actress on that short list.  She's easily one of the best actresses under the age of 30 out there.  The only problem with her is that she keeps coming out in all of these romantic comedies or other shitty movies like that. If you need to be convinced about her acting, check out Rachel Getting Married.  The film she should have won a Best Actress Oscar for but the Academy decided to give the life time Best Actress award to Kate Winslet that year.

Agreed.  While I don't care for a lot of the roles she chooses, Hathaway is a fine actress and she'll do well in this, provided the writing is good.  And seeing as how the creative team behind this film is comprised of the same people that brought us the first two films, I see no reason why it shouldn't be.

[DEKO]

It was believed that the choice came down between Keira Knightly, Jessica Biel, or Anne Hathaway.  Anne Hathaway although not the prettiest is by far the best actress on that short list.  She's easily one of the best actresses under the age of 30 out there.  The only problem with her is that she keeps coming out in all of these romantic comedies or other shitty movies like that. If you need to be convinced about her acting, check out Rachel Getting Married.  The film she should have won a Best Actress Oscar for but the Academy decided to give the life time Best Actress award to Kate Winslet that year.

Agreed.  While I don't care for a lot of the roles she chooses, Hathaway is a fine actress and she'll do well in this, provided the writing is good.  And seeing as how the creative team behind this film is comprised of the same people that brought us the first two films, I see no reason why it shouldn't be.

I agree!

Check the pics, I can see possibilities:

[JohnnyL]

It was believed that the choice came down between Keira Knightly, Jessica Biel, or Anne Hathaway.  Anne Hathaway although not the prettiest is by far the best actress on that short list.  She's easily one of the best actresses under the age of 30 out there.  The only problem with her is that she keeps coming out in all of these romantic comedies or other shitty movies like that. If you need to be convinced about her acting, check out Rachel Getting Married.  The film she should have won a Best Actress Oscar for but the Academy decided to give the life time Best Actress award to Kate Winslet that year.

Agreed.  While I don't care for a lot of the roles she chooses, Hathaway is a fine actress and she'll do well in this, provided the writing is good.  And seeing as how the creative team behind this film is comprised of the same people that brought us the first two films, I see no reason why it shouldn't be.

I agree!

Check the pics, I can see possibilities:

Lol.  I like the Chris Nolan "Chill the fuck out" pic.

[MontrealCity's Most]

Shes hot

[JohnnyL]

Shes hot

That too.

[Shallow]

It was believed that the choice came down between Keira Knightly, Jessica Biel, or Anne Hathaway.  Anne Hathaway although not the prettiest is by far the best actress on that short list.  She's easily one of the best actresses under the age of 30 out there.  The only problem with her is that she keeps coming out in all of these romantic comedies or other shitty movies like that. If you need to be convinced about her acting, check out Rachel Getting Married.  The film she should have won a Best Actress Oscar for but the Academy decided to give the life time Best Actress award to Kate Winslet that year.

Agreed.  While I don't care for a lot of the roles she chooses, Hathaway is a fine actress and she'll do well in this, provided the writing is good.  And seeing as how the creative team behind this film is comprised of the same people that brought us the first two films, I see no reason why it shouldn't be.

My issue isn't with the cast, and I had faith in Nolan with Heath from the start. I just didn't like the last quarter of the Dark Knight and feel it might carry over into the next film. My worry is the quality of writing will suffer. I have no problem at all with Hathaway. Not even Bane yet. I'm just curious what the Bane story will be.

[doggfather]

Shes hot

[JohnnyL]

It was believed that the choice came down between Keira Knightly, Jessica Biel, or Anne Hathaway.  Anne Hathaway although not the prettiest is by far the best actress on that short list.  She's easily one of the best actresses under the age of 30 out there.  The only problem with her is that she keeps coming out in all of these romantic comedies or other shitty movies like that. If you need to be convinced about her acting, check out Rachel Getting Married.  The film she should have won a Best Actress Oscar for but the Academy decided to give the life time Best Actress award to Kate Winslet that year.

Agreed.  While I don't care for a lot of the roles she chooses, Hathaway is a fine actress and she'll do well in this, provided the writing is good.  And seeing as how the creative team behind this film is comprised of the same people that brought us the first two films, I see no reason why it shouldn't be.

My issue isn't with the cast, and I had faith in Nolan with Heath from the start. I just didn't like the last quarter of the Dark Knight and feel it might carry over into the next film. My worry is the quality of writing will suffer. I have no problem at all with Hathaway. Not even Bane yet. I'm just curious what the Bane story will be.

 From a narrative point of view, I don't really know where they're going to go with it.  I have faith that they'll come up with something, but the rumors about the movie featuring Dr. Hugo Strange actually made a little more sense to me.  Because the "Prey" storyline dealt with Hugo Strange assisting the Gotham Police Department track down a fugitive Batman (which was pretty much the situation that Batman was left in at the end of "The Dark Knight.")  There are already rumors that, despite using Bane as the villain rather than Hugo Strange, they still may be using elements of the "Prey" storyline.  Of course you have to take any rumors about this movie with a grain of salt though.  This casting announcement pretty well illustrates how wrong most of the early rumors about this movie have been.