UPDATED: 'The Dark Knight Rises' Reveals Even More Villains!

UPDATE: This report has been officially confirmed as FAKE! So disregard most of what I wrote here, thanks to Doc Kronner for the heads up...

I'm sure you all read the latest edition of the Rumor Report where we talked about the casting of Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Inception, 200 Days of Summer) in TDKR and speculated on the characters he could portray. In the same report we talked about the rumor that Marion Cotillard (Inception, Public Enemies) was also joining the cast. Well, Nolan recently confirmed not only that both were officially casted, he also revealed the roles. 


JGL will be playing Roman "Black Mask" Sionis and Mademoiselle Cotillard will be playing Batman's "beloved" Talia al Ghul. Here's the press release from The Film Stage:


Warner Bros. Pictures announced today that Marion Cotillard and Joseph Gordon-Levitt have been cast in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises and will join an ensemble cast alongside Christian Bale who returns in the title role of Bruce Wayne/Batman. They will play Talia al Ghul and Roman Sionis respectively.

On casting Cotillard, Director Christopher Nolan stated, “I am delighted to have the opportunity to work with Marion again and have no doubt she will be a great addition to our ensemble cast and bring to life a key part of the universe we have created as we finish our story.”

On the addition of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Nolan said, “I am thrilled to be working with Joseph again after a delightful experience working with him on Inception and am certain he will deliver another thrilling performance as one of Batman’s most popular villains.”

Nolan will direct the film from a screenplay he wrote with Jonathan Nolan, from a story by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer. Nolan will also produce the film with his longtime producing partner, Emma Thomas, and Charles Roven.

The Dark Knight Rises is slated for release on July 20, 2012. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Now I'm not so sure we will see Black Mask in all his glory, probably more focused on Roman Sionis, crime boss. I think that maybe Doc Kronner's correct and we will see more of a rival to Bruce Wayne then to Batman, but I just don't know anymore. With superhero movies one of the biggest problems has always been packing the movie with too many villains, so why does it feel okay that Nolan is doing it?


Catwoman, Bane, Black Mask and Talia al Ghul, plus who knows who else. It does seem a little bit like overkill, but I seriously can't wait. If this is going to be Nolan's last foray into the Bat universe he is certainly going out with a bang.


The Dark Knight Rises hits theaters 07.20.2012