The Dark Knight Rises Casting Call (All Villains)

[Doctor Who]

So basically you listed every asian female actress in hollywood?

It bothers me even more when Talia is only a little bit Chinese, but more European and Arab. LOL

 

[sabetoonth]

he was casting Lady Shive, not Talia

 

[Nightwing 52]

I'm in the boat that thinks Tom Hardy would work well as Hugo Strange. But given his look, I also think he could be a good choice for Calendar Man.

And Maggie Q is fine choice for Shiva.

 

[Doctor Who]

Ya know, somebody mentioned James Woods as Black Mask, and wasn't honestly sure who he was; after looking him up and knowing that he's been one of my favorite voice actors since I was a kid, I'm biased enough to say he'd be perfect for that role. I can just envision his voice now. t:

 

[zeptron]

If James Woods was Black Mask, all I'd be able to think is Hades.

 

[Rodrigo90]

James Woods as Black Mask?...Why not cast Eddie Murphy as The Riddler?

 

[Ryan]

I'm thinking that Nolan will either use actors he's already used in movies or ones that he has wanted to. I'm not a huge fan of Dicaprio, but I think he would be a major coup if he were able to secure him. Matt Damon, originally scheduled to be Dent, could be a choice too. Personally, I'd like to see Joquin Phoneix make his return to acting in the Batman film.

 

[Doctor Who]

James Woods as Black Mask?...Why not cast Eddie Murphy as The Riddler?

That was uncalled for.

 

[Rodrigo90]

Im sorry,but its true. Black Mask is (technically) meant to be Bruce Wayne's doppleganger. A 'What if' evil version of Batman,born of hatred and control.

 

[Texas Zombie]

James woods, FTW.

 

[That-Guy]

I'm in the boat that thinks Tom Hardy would work well as Hugo Strange. But given his look, I also think he could be a good choice for Calendar Man.

Glad to see I'm not alone on this one. It's funny though, the more I think about it, I could see Hardy as a number of different Bat villains. Calendar Man would also work, I agree... he's one of those actors that isn't afraid to bulk up, so Bane or Hush would be a possibility, but he (usually) has much slighter build and I could see him as Zsasz or even the Riddler.

 

[Gamma Goliath]

I really don't want to see bane in this franchise.
But I'd like to see 3 big villians, preferably pengiun, riddler, and black mask.

 

[Captain America]

My favorites

 

[p4poetic]

I'll re-post this because Depp's name is still being bandied about, and no one responded when I posted it on the Riddler casting thread:




I'm sadly not surprised to see such a high turnout for Johnny Depp. What ridiculous, typical fan-boy casting...


Firstly the basics;
1) He's heavily booked out till 2011, so he couldn't fit in the third batman film unless he dropped out of something, and if you look at the roles and the films, they are perfect Johnny Depp casting - so he wont.

2) He outshines the entire cast put together; you can't put Johnny Depp as an aside on a poster billing for a huge blockbuster like the follow up to the Dark Knight. It's the same logic that James Bond's villain or girl can never outshine Bond himself (Or the director for that matter - which is why Stephen Spielburg was turned down for the job)

3) He's too expensive. Look at the actor budget; Christian Bale is now a lot more expensive than he was in Batman Begins due to his career taking off like a rocket, then we have Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine. Adding Johnny Depp would be another big slice of money - he'd demand, quite rightly, a big pay; not that that rules out his casting outright, it just means that Warner Bros aren't going to be keen - especially when his stardom isn't needed to get the picture sold.


I don't think any of the above points can really be argued with.


Then we have my personal judgements on him as an actor in relation to the character:
1) He doesn't convince me as a villain. His most villainous role was in Sweeney Todd, and he only shined when at the highest tempo (his scenes when he was going really crazy). The Riddler isn't about high tempo - I don't think anyone wants another Jim Carey. Playing Sweeney Todd showed that quieter, reflective sides of evil are actually not his greatest strengths as a performer.

which leads me on to:

2) He's got the wrong kind of quirky. ALL his characters have been loveably odd - even Sweeney Todd to some extent. He is inherently loveable - which is why he has such a strong following of screaming teenage girls. I'm really not convinced that he can portray truly despicable evil, obsessive quiet intensity and madness-whilst-being-perfectly-together. The Riddler has to half convince you that he's sane - Depp doesn't do that even when he's playing characters that ARE sane.

3) He doesn't have the look. He has that charming all-american surfer/come rock musician look - a sort of hippy style within his very cheekbones. He does not have an ineherently coporate/intellectual/executive/genius look to him. He isn't traditional Riddler, and his look doesn't correlate with what most people are pitching him as; he'd look odd as an FBI agent, he'd loo odd in a corporate environment - hence why his roles haven't put him in these environments.



That's just the essentials.



Also do you really want,
1) Screaming fan-girl attachment?
2) The general mainstream audience interest to be summed up as 'oooh johnny DEPP's in it!?' rather than what it was last year, 'They're having the JOKER? that'll be cool, I want to see how they do that' or pre-2005, ' a Good batman movie? cool'
3) Media marketing/press junkets centered on Johnny Depp's involvement - the movie media love him, and it will inevitably swing this way (Another reason why Warner's wouldnt cast him; the control of the marketing for The Dark Knight was a strong factor in it's success)

You must not be familiar with his filmography. He has played those characters; he plays a FBI agent Joesph D. Pistone in "Donnie Brasco" who went undercover to infiltrate the mob. In "Nick of Time" he plays a mild mannered accountant. In "From Hell" he plays a police officer who investigate the 'Jack the Ripper' murders. In "The Ninth Gate" he plays a rare book dealer. And of course, in his first major role, he plays an undercover police officer in "21 Jump Street".

As for his look, I wouldn't say he looks "all American surfer" as that would suggest blonde hair and blue eyes, whereas Depp has olive skin, dark hair and eyes. Because of his Native American (Cherokee) heritage, his 'look' can be manipulated in a way that he's been able to play more than one ethnicity (Italian American, Cuban, Spaniard, Gypsy and rightfully Native American) convincingly. But he does look like a rock musician, as he is one before he became an actor (I don't know if you knew that).

Although I have to agree, unfortunately, that the general public and his rabid fangirls could ruin the movie's marketing and overshadow the film. Which is highly unfortunate, as I'd love to see him in Nolah's Batman. Perhaps in a smaller role (like a cameo) as a lesser known character, would work. Also, a drastic change from his normal look (long hair) should also do the trick. Cut all of his hair. Hell shave it, like he has it here.

 

[Captain America]

he needs to keep the hair...

 

[Jokers_Wild]

I think that Nolan will snag either DiCaprio or JGL for a role in Batman 3...

 

[That-Guy]

I really don't want to see bane in this franchise.
But I'd like to see 3 big villians, preferably pengiun, riddler, and black mask.

I don't know why, but I hate Black Mask. I've never found him to be an interesting character.

 

[Two-Face]

I think BM is a villain for Bruce Wayne than he's for Batman.

 

[Texas Zombie]

Michael fassbender for riddler.

Timothy olyphant for black mask

Colin Farrell for deadshot.
Also deadshot should be done very subtly, he cannot be done extreme(just as they toned down scarecrow).

Also if anyone has played splinter cell conviction, I want batman to get a close range sonar, just like in the game.

 

[Heisenberg]

Michael fassbender for riddler.

Also if anyone has played splinter cell conviction, I want batman to get a close range sonar, just like in the game.

Michael Fassbender for anything. Seriously, I think he'd be able to pull of Selina Kyle, the guys brilliant. Also, your suggestion for the sonar would be a far better implementation. The sonar in TDK was somewhat confusing/distracting the first time I watched it, SCC nails the way it should be used/shown.

What I'd really like to see Nolan do is draw in some of his previous collaborators for Batman 3. I'd love to see Robin Williams as Ventriloquist, but more subtle in that it's more about the Dis-associative Identity Disorder than the dummy itself. Of course, I wouldn't want the dummy excluded whatsoever, but if Williams channelled 1/2 of his Insomnia character and 1/2 of his One Hour Photo character he'd be a spectacularly creepy and destructive villain. Of course, with the Mob in disarray it would only make sense to have someone else vying for the top spot too, which would of course lay at the feet of Black Mask - who I'd love to see Guy Pearce play. Two psychotically unstable individuals playing off of each other would very interesting and something Nolan handles all-to-well. Even though we're talking very big name actors here, I'd like this to be an underlying story whilst the main theme of the film rests with Batman evading the cops and trying to clear his name and become the hero once again with the help of Gordon. This of course, being impeded by investigations by one E. Nigma, who's only making the situation worse by constantly searching for Batman's identity. I'd cast DiCaprio. The guy has the acting chops to set fire to the screen in a conversation with anyone in the cast, there's so many opportunities for classic scenes as the Riddler investigates everything about Bruce Wayne. And he's also got the same physicality as Ledger if it comes to a psysical altercation with Batman (Although, I'd be far happier if Riddler managed to entangle Batman into the Black Mask/Ventriloquist gang war in order to try and have him killed/caught/demasked). Riddler shouldn't be a physical character imo.

 

[Rodrigo90]

I do NOT like this notion of Riddler wanting to find out Batman's identity,its already been done in Forever. In the comics he came in to show off his intellectual criminal skills,and Batman was his stepping stone.
If he wanted to find it out he could track down Reese,either as a Fed or a criminal and BINGO...simple and crap.

Why cant he be original and simply say "I have no interest in you, just your intelligence", ?.

It would be far more chilling if the audience knew who he was,and got a glimpse into his metamorphosis into The Riddler. Maybe after he has committed his crime,he leaves behind an encrypted CD message for either the police or Batman,and it has to be decyphered on a computer,this reveals the next set of riddles to his next crime.

The crimes can range from anything,as long as he can describe them in riddle,maybe several he has craftily created himself.

 

[Doctor Who]

You must not be familiar with his filmography. He has played though characters; he plays a FBI agent Joesph D. Pistone in "Donnie Brasco" who went undercover to infiltrate the mob. In "Nick of Time" he plays a mild mannered accountant. In "From Hell" he plays a police officer who investigate the 'Jack the Ripper' murders. In "The Ninth Gate" he plays a rare book dealer. And of course, in his first major role, he plays an undercover police officer in "21 Jump Street".

As for his look, I wouldn't say he looks "all American surfer" as that would suggest blonde hair and blue eyes, whereas Depp has olive skin, dark hair and eyes. Because of his Native American (Cherokee) heritage, his 'look' can be manipulated in a way that he's been able to play more than one ethnicity (Italian American, Cuban, Spaniard, Gypsy and rightfully Native American) convincingly. But he does look like a rock musician, as he is one before he became an actor (I don't know if you knew that).

Although I have to agree, unfortunately, that the general public and his rabid fangirls could ruin the movie's marketing and overshadow the film. Which is highly unfortunate, as I'd love to see him in Nolah's Batman. Perhaps in a smaller role (like a cameo) as a lesser known character, would work. Also, a drastic change from his normal look (long hair) should also do the trick. Cut all of his hair. Hell shave it, like he has it here.

^He was terrific in Ninth Gate; god love Johnny. Terrific actor, if not one of the best in Hollywood. However, he is a little too popular; not really a choice Nolan does as a curve ball. I mean, we all know he can do it; but the Dark Knight roles usually go to ones who aren't really big yet or not even well known at all. They should go with more subtle actors that are about to make their rise; August Diehl, Hans Matheson, Michael Fassbender, Paul Dano, guys with talent in that realm.

 

[Ace of Knaves]

Tom Hardy for Black Mask or even Joker if they recast.

 

[Majik1387]

Nolan did a total of ONE curve ball choice, and even that is debatable. People really need to stop discounting certain actors because they don't fit the "curve ball" mentality.

 

[NEXUS 6]

Michael fassbender for riddler.

I came onto this thread (I tend to frequent the Marvel boards, since they seem to have their ducks in a row as far as timely production goes) just to post this exact casting choice. I honestly feel he could create a villain to stand on par with Heath's Joker.