The Dark Knight Rises casting news broke this morning by Warner Bros: Tom Hardy will portray Bane and Anne Hathaway will play Selina Kyle, who is also known as Catwoman.
Luckily director Christopher Nolan doesn’t do camp, so Hardy’s Bane won’t be the brainless brute from Joel Schumacher’s Batman & Robin.
For those not in the know: Bane spent majority of his early life in prison, but had a thirst for knowledge; reading books and receiving an education from a Jesuit priest. And, of course, constantly working out with a penchant for violence. He’s then forced as a test subject for a drug called Venom, which increases his strength exponentially, but forces him to take a dosage every 12 hours or suffer side-effects.
Without delving too far into comic story arcs, Bane’s intelligence rivals Batman’s.
Tom Hardy is inspired casting for the role, and he’s proven himself as a capable actor. I’m entirely looking forward to his take on Bane.
“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.”
— Christopher Nolan
And Selina Kyle? Her origin was revised a few times, but the gist of her story is that she’s a jewel thief and cat burglar — hence the name “Catwoman”. Trained in gymnastics, Selina employs the skill in her burglaries. In Gotham City she’s trained in martial arts.
Selina Kyle has a rocky relationship with Bruce Wayne while, as Catwoman, is flirtatious towards Batman despite being a thorn in his side.
I can see Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle. She has an onscreen charm that matches the persona well. Catwoman will translate easily in Nolan’s Batman movie.
“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.”
— Christopher Nolan
Despite hating the title The Dark Knight Rises, I’m stoked for Nolan’s third and final Batman film — and excited with the addition of Tom Hardy and Anne Hathaway. Now, here’s to hoping Batman gets to further display his detective skills.
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The film adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith’s novel Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter is underway with Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted) at the helm. In the starring role as Lincoln is Broadway actor Benjamin Walker.
