Filming has officially begun on The Dark Knight Rises; the third and final film in the current, well renowned, Christopher Nolan (Inception) Batman film series; and despite only being a week into production, Batman fans have already been treated to the first official image from the film (available to view below); a dark and moody photo of Tom Hardy as Bane.
After Bronson there was never any worries about seeing Hardy sufficiently bulking up for the role; and he does look massively muscular in the newly released picture; but thankfully Nolan seems to be sticking to his more real-world style, and has kept the infamous Bat-villain (the man who broke the bat) from looking as OTT and cartoony as he often does in the comics (although he is wearing the iconic comic-book mask).
The image was released today; via a clever viral marketing campaign that began with the movie’s official website going live, a strange soundfile, and a hashtag leading to a Twitter account where the image has been posted; although its release has raised a number of question, namely what does the phrase “the fire rises” mean?
Batman’s third outing will star series regulars Christian Bale (The Fighter); as Bruce Wayne/Batman; Michael Caine (Get Carter); as Alfred; and Gary Oldman (Leon); as Commissioner Gordon; alongside newcomers Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Inception); as a Gotham City beat cop named John Blake; Marion Cotillard (Inception); as a Wayne Enterprises board member named Miranda Tate; and Anne Hathaway (Love and Other Drugs); as Selina Kyle/Catwoman.
With a release date of July 20th 2012 scheduled for The Dark Knight Rises, there’s plenty of time for more images, sneaky viral releases, an eventual trailer or four, and of course, the coveted first image of Hathaway as Catwoman to be released in the run-up, but for now fans can see the dark picture of Bane below (and click it to view full size).
Matt Wheeldon.
Source: The Dark Knight Rises.
