Bale will be back as Batman, but everything else about a third movie remains a riddle. Ever since audiences flooded movie theaters this summer to give "The Dark Knight" its record run at the box office, there's been talk about the Caped Crusader's next cinematic adventure. Namely, which villain (or two) from the rogue's gallery of Batman enemies will he be fighting, and who will be playing him or her? This week, attention was once again focused on the rebooted Batman franchise. Not only did Heath Ledger get a posthumous Best Supporting Actor Golden Globes nomination, but also "The Dark Knight" smashed the record for the most Blu-ray discs sold in one day this past Tuesday.
In spite of all this, very little about a third "Batman" movie is set at this time. The only thing that is certain now is Christian Bale is under contract to return as Bruce Wayne. Everything else is up in the air. No storylines approved. No one else cast. Most importantly, visionary director Christopher Nolan still hasn't officially signed on to make the film. This week Nolan addressed one of the main issues that is holding up development, namely that third installments in a series tend to be bad. Think "The Godfather Part III," "Superman III," and "Batman Forever," the third movie of the original series.
Of course, this lack of cold, hard facts has just kicked the rumor mill into overdrive. There have been scores of rumors that Johnny Depp might play The Riddler, to which he has done little to allay. While on a Florida radio show, Depp was asked directly if he was going to play the question-mark clad villain and he gave this cryptic response. "Oh yeah I heard about that. Not that I know of. It seems like it'd be a fun gig for a while, yeah."
And though there's also buzz about Philip Seymour Hoffman playing the Penguin, the real hot gossip seems to be swirling around the possibility of Catwoman making an appearance in Batman 3. Most recently, E! Online has reported that Rachel Weisz of "The Mummy" fame is being considered for the part. This differs from rumors earlier in the year -- fueled by the original Catwoman Julie Newmar -- that Angelina Jolie might be getting the nod.
And still others say that Maggie Gyllenhaal will be donning the cat cowl, which is a bit of a head scratch considering her character Rachel Dawes was blown up in the Dark Knight. However, Hollywood Newsroom claims that Gyllenhaal along with Aaron Eckhart have signed up for not one but two Bat-flicks. The theory goes that Rachel will have used one of her nine lives in the blast and she returns from the dead as the leather-clad feline crime fighter.
Of course, David Goyer, the co-writer of "Batman Begins" and "The Dark Knight," has gone on record debunking every one of these rumors. "It's all B.S.," he told MTV. "ALL of it."
So if that's true and nothing has been decided, then we might as well throw in our two cents. Here's one prediction that I'm willing to stand by. Christopher Nolan's version of Gotham City is filled with outsized characters but nothing that falls under the supernatural. So don't expect comic book villains like Mr. Freeze or Clayface to find their way into the next film. And if you suffered through "Batman and Robin", you'll understand that that's not a bad thing.
The Riddler and the Penguin, however, are merely mortal -- if extraordinarily evil -- men who wear weird clothes. When casting for The Riddler, the most important thing is that the character possess a fiendish intelligence. If Depp doesn't make the cut, then Edward Norton's brooding intensity might work. But if Nolan (or whoever directs Part 3) wants more charm than menace, then he could do worse than to tap Robert Downey Jr. Or if they choose to make the character purely wicked and venomous, Daniel Day-Lewis could knock it out of the park.
The Penguin is a trickier character to pull off. Somehow, you have to make a short, rotund guy in a tux seem threatening. Danny DeVito and a lot of makeup made it work in "Batman Returns." Phillip Seymour Hoffman would be a great pick, but if he weren't available, then Ian McShane might work. His ruthless and foul-mouthed character on HBO's "Deadwood" won him a Golden Globe award. Why he's not thought of for dramatic roles, Ricky Gervais actually did a great job as a bad guy in a guest spot on "Alias," and he could drop in a few laughs that the movies have mostly lacked. Another choice could be Richard Dreyfuss since he played Dick Cheney with such aplomb this fall in "W."
And finally, there's Catwoman. While it's easy to picture Angelina Jolie as Catwoman, somehow the choice seems too on the nose. Besides, why would she bother hiding her identity behind a mask when everyone can recognize her by her lips? Rachel Weisz is a great actress, but in the "Mummy" flicks she never really took part in the action. Kate Beckinsale might work. Thanks to all her work in the "Underworld" series, she already has the bodysuit. Another suggestion might be Rosario Dawson. She's fit, she can act, and she has a killer jaw line that would look great in a cat mask.
While we wait for things to get further sorted out with this franchise, Christian Bale is starring in a reboot of another beloved movie series -- The Terminator. He'll be playing the grown-up resistance leader John Conner in "Terminator Salvation." It hits theaters in May, but you can check out the trailer below.
