OK, this comes from Hollywood Life. Who? The gossipy sister site of Deadline Hollywood and Movieline (owned by the same mega conglomerate). We’re reporting this because…well, it seems potentially plausible.
Is Joseph Gordon-Levitt in early discussions to play The Riddler in Christopher Nolan’s “Batman 3”? One thing is for sure, the script by Jonathan “Jonah” Nolan is not complete so nothing’s been set in stone, but we can believe that some early discussions could have been made.
Here’s some reasons why. As we wrote when “Batman 3″ was first officially announced, “we do like the Riddler , if only because there’s a serial killer-like quality to his character that you can ground in reality, whereas transposing silly characters to the screen like the Penguin or Mr. Freeze is something Nolan and company generally know better than to attempt.”
Nolan tends to be loyal to his actors too and we wrote, “We wouldn’t be surprised if key members of the ‘Inception’ cast — folks like Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Tom Hardy — turn up in the [‘Batman 3’] film somewhere.”
However, “Batman 3” (obviously its working title only) isn’t scheduled to hit theaters until July 2012. That’s two summers away, so if there is any grain of truth to Hollywood Life’s report at all, it’s likely just those early “wouldn’t it be cool if…” talks. The gossip site says “Batman 3” and JGL’s involvement was a running joke on the “Inception” set and we can believe that. Also, the young actor is also evidently a big part of the story and has a major role in the picture. Still, take this one with a grain of salt for now. But as we said, we do hope and expect to see the Riddler, since Nolan’s grounded/believable super hero milieu seems to work far above most of the classic, but very cartoony Batman arch enemies that would never seem to play in that world.
Update: Gordon-Levitt’s reps have denied this. We expected as much, but that doesn’t mean it couldn’t happen… one day. Who knows, we’re not saying we bought it either, but again, we have our reasons listed above why we didn’t think this news was as ridiculous as the Eddie Murphy rumors that was just positively ludicrous.
I could get behind this, definitely.
I like JGL, and the Riddler makes sense as a Nolan villain, but do you think it might be too similar to the Joker?
I'm no expert in the Batman universe, but both seem to be deviant/maniacal/eccentric characters who have fun/like to toy with Batman and Gotham.
JGL kinda looks like Ledger, doesn't he?
Yes, this would be great.
Just two reservations.
1. The similarity of Riddler and Joker that Trent pointed out, AS WELL AS the passing resemblance between JGL and HL.
2. I feel JGL may be too young to seem sinister enough for a serious villain.
But point2 is trivial, i suppose.
He's egg-viously in neggotations to play Egghead.
the riddler just seems like a shit villian, leaving clues and notes behind.
the article says 'the joker" in the second paragraph, not the riddler.
As with the previous two Nolan films, there's going to be more than one villain. Maybe the Riddler character will be a young hacker-type leaving clues as to Batman's identity (or Bruce Wayne's illegal spying and weapons)? The actual imminent danger in the 3rd movie may come from another character.
if the riddler is a character, he wont be the main threat.
my money is on Talia al Ghul to complete the trilogy.
and marion cotillard will play her
your facts are wrong. jonah nolan is writing the script, not goyer.
Remember, Heath Ledger was announced as the Joker in July 2006, a full 2 years before TDK arrived. I would not be surprised if the main villain and the actor/actress playing it is announced by late summer/early fall for Batman 3. Whether it is as the Riddler or another character, I'd love to see Joseph in a Batman movie. I'm just a big fan of his work.
Even though this is merely speculation, I'd be more than pleased to see Levitt work his way into the film.
As much as like JGL, I must not be the only one not feeling this rumour?
As much as like JGL, I must not be the only one not feeling this rumour?
Well, if you are willing to actually consider the possibility that Hollywood Life prints nonfiction, here's something from USA Today that sounds far fetched but…: http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2010-06-10-buzz10_ST_N.htm
I like how The Dark Knight is a promotional tool for Inception and Inception will be a great marketing tool for Batman 3. If Inception is a huge hit then it would be no surprise to see JGL and Marion Cotillard in Batman.
Why not get DiCaprio to play a dream-stealing villain in Batman 3?
Actually, DiCaprio might be a better choice. He's been buttoned up for a while. Maybe he could ramp up the creativity as a villain in Batman.
Marion Cotillard as Catwoman, of course. Or Rihanna.