Batman 3 News!

Kinda. Nothing too exciting or revelatory. But it has been confirmed that Tom Hardy has been cast in the next Batman movie. Most of you will know Hardy as Eames from Inception. You know, the guy that dreams of a bigger gun. Or however that line went.


This makes sense. Everyone in Inception was top notch and Christopher Nolan likes to use people he's previously worked with (especially Michael Caine, it seems). But who will Hardy play? Officially, no one has a clue. But since this is Batman 3, speculation abounds. Comic book writer Mark Millar claims that Killer Croc will be the main villian and Hardy will play him. This is partially based off of some news or rumor that some scenes will be filmed in the New Orleans area. I guess New Orleans = swamps = Killer Croc?

I don't see it. Croc is too out there for Nolan's focus on gritty realism. How would they make him seem real besides offering a lame explanation that he was born with a rare skin condition? I really don't want to see Hardy in green face paint. Sure, I have faith that Nolan could pull it off if he really wanted to, but it just doesn't seem to jive with the tone of the series thus far. But I could always be wrong.

So who do I think he'll play? Do you even care what I think? Honestly, it could be anyone, from a well known villain to an obscure character or mob thug. But, I could see him working well as a Nolan-ized version of Detective Harvey Bullock. Bullock hates Batman even when the Caped Crusader is on the best of terms with the GCPD. But if you recall, The Dark Knight ended with Batman on the run from the police. Perhaps Bullock is put in charge of the task force to bring Batman down?
But then, who will the villain actually be? There's still all the rumors about the Riddler, but actually, I don't really want there to be a true villain. I'd rather Nolan focus on Batman trying to wage his war on crime while the police hunt him down. I think it could work well as a meditation on the issue of vigilantism in general. We support it in comics and movies, but would we in real life? If society's laws don't provide justice, should we seek justice outside of the law, or work to change the law? A flamboyant character from Batman's rogues gallery really isn't necessary for that.

But that's all speculation. All we know for sure is this: Tom Hardy will be in Batman 3. The end.

Read more about it at CHUD.