While it’s still some ways off entering production, rumours of more castings, and potential castings, for the upcoming third film in the current Batman franchise continue to persist; with the latest suggesting that Inception star Marion Cotillard may be the latest addition to Warner Bros.’ next superhero movie.
Marion’s name joins an ever-growing list of Inception stars to be linked to the film; as Michael Caine will once again be returning to the series as Bruce Wayne/Batman’s butler Alfred, Tom Hardy has joined the cast as Bane (a Batman villain known as ‘The Man Who Broke the Bat’ since breaking Batman’s back in the comics), and Joseph Gordon-Levitt has been rumoured to be in discussions for an as yet unknown role; but so far her involvement with The Dark Knight Rises still isn’t official.
According to French newspaper Le Figaro (who originally broke the story) Cotillard will only be appearing in one film over the next year (owing largely to the fact that she’s soon to be giving birth), but has chosen Batman 3 as the one she’d like to do; something which her representatives suggested may be true, when they stated that she is “in discussions, but nothing has been confirmed yet.”
For some time there have been reports of two female leads appearing in the next Batman movie, and as one has already gone to Alice in Wonderland’s Anne Hathaway (who will be appearing as Selina Kyle; the comic-book character better known as her alter-ego Catwoman), there’s no reason that Marion couldn’t fulfill the remaining role; which unconfirmed rumours report to be a love interest for Wayne/Batman, and/or Talia Al Ghul (the daughter of the villain played by Liam Neeson in Batman Begins).
Returning to the series will be Christian Bale; as Bruce Wayne/Batman; Michael Caine; as his mentor Alfred; Gary Oldman; as Police Commissioner Jim Gordon; and Morgan Freeman; as technical whizz/businessman Lucius Fox; as well as writer director Christopher Nolan; who last helmed Inception, and recently confirmed that production is roughly “ten weeks out.”
Those ten weeks put us right in the April/May start date that Michael Caine suggested last July, with filming reported to be taking place in London, L.A., Pittsburgh, and New York, before The Dark Knight Rises is released on July 20th 2012, and Nolan’s saga comes to an end; as much to fans insistence to the contrary, he continues to assert that The Dark Knight Rises is “the conclusion to the story.”
