The Dark Knight Rises The TDKR General Discussion Thread - - - - - - - Part 156

[The Joker]

Well I am glad Bale feels that way because I wouldn't want to see him back unless it was under Nolan's direction. His universe, his Batman. That's the way it should stay.

 

[Gothamsknight]

Yeah I wouldn't want anybody other than Nolan handling Bales Batman

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

Sadly, I don't think Nolan will ever go near Batman again. While I love TDKR, you could almost feel Nolan looking for the exit behind the camera.

 

[Rick190293]

If WB wants it, they'll do it. That's how it works, if the Nostalgia trend continues next years.

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

If WB wants it, they'll do it. That's how it works, if the Nostalgia trend continues next years.

Never mind Batman... Nolan doesn't even want anything to do with WB right now. He threw a fit and got everything he wanted over at Universal. As long as they keep him happy, WB can keep wanting.

 

[Rick190293]

Never mind Batman... Nolan doesn't even want anything to do with WB right now. He threw a fit and got everything he wanted over at Universal. As long as they keep him happy, WB can keep wanting.

Yeah, but even without Nolan, if someone at WB comes witht the idea, they throw some millions at Bale's hand and there it is: Bat-bale returns.
Not that I'd want it, TDKR gave a great ending to the trilogy, but after the recent comebacks, everything can happen.

 

[The Joker]

Yeah I'm pretty sure Keaton and Maguire have both said in the past they would never do Batman/Spider-Man again without Burton/Raimi. And here we are. Money talks.

Though after all the Ezra Miller controversy I am betting Keaton is regretting his decision.

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

Though after all the Ezra Miller controversy I am betting Keaton is regretting his decision.

He still has Batgirl... so hopefully that has a smoother path to release.

Miller's situation won't reflect on Keaton's likeability or performance. If anything, he might just be the saving grace of this thing and WB will throw even more money at him to stick around.

In regards to Bale, I still think he would be the hardest to convince no matter how much money they throw at him.

 

[The Joker]

He still has Batgirl... so hopefully that has a smoother path to release.

Miller's situation won't reflect on Keaton's likeability or performance. If anything, he might just be the saving grace of this thing and WB will throw even more money at him to stick around.

In regards to Bale, I still think he would be the hardest to convince no matter how much money they throw at him.

Its not about reflecting on Keaton's likeability or performance, its about being involved in a movie that will probably be a dumpster fire now unless they do a complete reshoot with a brand new Flash actor. He's already been in that stinker Morbius.

I'd rather Bale not return unless its with Nolan. But if recent history has taught us anything its that even the seemingly impossible is possible. Regardless of what actors have claimed in the past.

 

[Filmfreak]

I agree about not seeing Bale coming back. Though things could change in the distant future, generally speaking he's a lot more selective than Keaton.

 

[Pfeiffer-Pfan]

I'm surprised Jackman is holding out. You just know Feige would love to have him for a cameo/one-off multiverse movie at some point. Stick him in some cool, updated version of the yellow/blue suit with the mask.

Good for him for holding firm (so far) on Logan being his swan song.

 

[routhman]

I trust Bale when he says he would only come back for Nolan, and I trust Nolan enough as an artist that he would only come back for the right particular reasons. In other words, I don't think either of these guys would do it again for a paycheck or to appeal to some nostalgic fanboy demand. So if it happened I would be onboard on principle, even if my position now is that I'd rather it didn't happen. But I'd be truly shocked should it come to pass. With Keaton's Batman, and Tobey and Andrew's Spider-men, there was a sense of unfinished business to varying degrees. That's not the case with Bale and Nolan.

I think that a fair criticism of the Nolan trilogy is that it feels incomplete. We saw Bruce become Batman in #1, and we saw him face one major challenge in #2. But then he immediately retires and is only drawn out by Bane? Hogwash. There’s a whole collection of missing chapters between #2 and #3.

The Nolan trilogy almost feels like Bruce dedicated his whole life—sacrificed normalcy and so much time—all to go out as Batman on just a few dire occasions. I’d love to see them revisit their world with films between #2 and #3. A soft retcon that makes it feel like Bale actually had a full career as Batman. Because as it stands, it feels like he went out a couple times, and that was that.

Not only that, but Bale’s Batman only had a few “peak Batman” moments. Moments like “Swear to me,” running from the GCPD like in BTAS, limited investigative work, etc. I think there’s a lot missing from the characterization that could be added with further stories. I know, from Nolan’s and Goyer’s perspectives, it was probability intentional in the name of keeping the world grounded. But we’ve seen very recently in The Batman that you can embrace the comics a bit more wholeheartedly without sacrificing a sense of verisimilitude. I’d personally like to see Bale’s Batman in a more intimate detective story, something spooky along the lines of Phantasm.

In retrospect, it’s clear that the trilogy feels that way because the storytellers were forced to navigate around the tragedy of Heath’s passing. But now that we’ve (the audience and the creatives) collectively had time to heal from the shock and sadness of that, it seems reasonable and even desirable to tell some stories set between #2 and #3. Stories that extend the mythos of Bale’s interpretation.

This would be similar to what Disney has done recently with Star Wars. There were a lot of plot holes/anemic anthology between episodes 3 and 4, and they’ve made an effort to fill that in with Rogue One, Mandalorian, and the Obi-Wan series.

 

[Gothamsknight]

I could potentially see a scenario where even if Nolan doesn't direct, he gives his blessing to Bale. It's still extremely unlikely though.

 

[Rick190293]

I don't think the trilogy feels incomplete. Bruce simple retired after TDK and that's it. Pretty clear what happened: he didn't became Batman in this period. I can see why this might be controversial, but IMO, it works with Nolan's approach during the 3 movies. And after Obi-Wan, please no more prequels that goes from nothing to anywhere

 

[The Batman]

The trilogy only feels incomplete if you think every franchise needs to be like MCU or Disney era Star Wars.

 

[BatLobster]

I could potentially see a scenario where even if Nolan doesn't direct, he gives his blessing to Bale. It's still extremely unlikely though.

Like I've said before, I think the only scenario I could see would be if Jonathan Nolan was involved and had a story he wanted to tell. Based on that one comment Jonathan made once about how it would be interesting to revisit the character in a later part of his life, plus I think in general he's got more of a fanboy sensibility. Still a longshot though.

 

[I Am The Knight]

Considering how much Batman we get on a regular basis, and how franchises are being milked dry to satisfy the constant need for content, I would very much appreciate it if the Dark Knight trilogy could be just that, a trilogy. No more. No special appearances by Bale, no "this is what Batman was doing during those eight years" story, no prequel or sequel. There is no need. Nolan told a complete story across multiple decades (for the main character). Fans need to let their imagination fill in the gaps again and just allow for stories to end.

 

[BatLobster]

Considering how much Batman we get on a regular basis, and how franchises are being milked dry to satisfy the constant need for content, I would very much appreciate it if the Dark Knight trilogy could be just that, a trilogy. No more. No special appearances by Bale, no "this is what Batman was doing during those eight years" story, no prequel or sequel. There is no need. Nolan told a complete story across multiple decades (for the main character). Fans need to let their imagination fill in the gaps again and just allow for stories to end.

I completely agree in principle. As fun as it is to ponder, it's hard for me to disagree with that. It may help keep it more special over time to just let it be.

If you think about it...how many trilogies have been allowed to just stay trilogies at this point without getting revisited somehow?

Indiana Jones...nope
Matrix.. nope
Lord of the Rings...nope
Star Wars...LOL

I guess there's still Back to the Future.

 

[Rick190293]

That's what I hope too. For better or worse, Nolan wrapped nicely Bruce's story, but knowing Hollywood, specially how WB relies on Batman, I fully expect we'll meet Baleman again...
A comic book or even animated series would be better, through.

 

[I Am The Knight]

I completely agree in principle. As fun as it is to ponder, it's hard for me to disagree with that. It may help keep it more special over time to just let it be.

If you think about it...how many trilogies have been allowed to just stay trilogies at this point without getting revisited somehow?

Indiana Jones...nope
Matrix.. nope
Lord of the Rings...nope
Star Wars...LOL

I guess there's still Back to the Future.

Well, LOTR I don't mind since there is material to adapt in the books, though I wish Jackson's "Prequels" hadn't turned out the way they did But yeah, I personally have no desire to revisit Nolan's Batworld as I feel that story has ended. I have problems with TDKR but it's ultimately a perfectly fine ending to a story.

Of course, maybe I'm being too precious about this. Blade Runner has one of the greatest endings of all time and the sequel kind of spoiled that, and yet I loved BR2049. So I don't know...I struggle with "do we need this" and "well that turned out fine" quite a bit.

 

[BatLobster]

Well, LOTR I don't mind since there is material to adapt in the books, though I wish Jackson's "Prequels" hadn't turned out the way they did But yeah, I personally have no desire to revisit Nolan's Batworld as I feel that story has ended. I have problems with TDKR but it's ultimately a perfectly fine ending to a story.

Of course, maybe I'm being too precious about this. Blade Runner has one of the greatest endings of all time and the sequel kind of spoiled that, and yet I loved BR2049. So I don't know...I struggle with "do we need this" and "well that turned out fine" quite a bit.

Top Gun Maverick is the perfect example for me of "never knew I needed this but so glad it exists" so it's why I try to never say never, although I think there's nothing wrong with being skeptical when some revivals haven't been too great.

I'd still say odds are it doesn't happen, but it's cool that Bale leaves the door a crack open only for the unlikely scenario that Nolan rings him up with a pitch.

 

[OnLeatherWings]

This film has joined Netflix, finally. The only one of the trilogy that wasn't on there.

 

[Blade Hoarder]

The better question is if Nolan would ever come back. What if Oppenheimer bombs? And the film after that too?

Directors often return to their past hit films when in a career downturn to try to rejuvenate their careers.

 

[Filmfreak]

The better question is if Nolan would ever come back. What if Oppenheimer bombs? And the film after that too?

Directors often return to their past hit films when in a career downturn to try to rejuvenate their careers.

If that were to happen multiple times in a row, he would probably leave blockbusters for a while and return to small scale films with relatively low budgets, like in the beginning of his career. He's not one to play it safe and cling to past properties. And if he ever were to return to a preexisting universe and characters, I'm sure it would be for a commercial hit he himself created, like Inception, rather than go and invest on a major film franchise with long history and a huge fanbase, once again. I'm not saying it can never happen, but it's very unlikely.

 

[Blade Hoarder]

He’ll probably just try to direct Bond. A franchise he loves. And a guaranteed hit for him if his career falters.