Nolan Talks ‘Batman 3’
Batman, Batman, who’s got the Batman? The Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan sure did, but according to a new interview with The L.A. Times, he might be hanging up the cape and cowl.
"There are two things to be said [in deciding whether or not to make a third Batman]," Nolan tells Geoff Boucher. "What’s the story? Is there a story that’s going to keep me emotionally invested for the couple of years that it will take to make another one? That’s the overriding question.
"On a more superficial level," he continues, "I have to ask the question: How many good third movies in a franchise can people name? [Laughs] At the same time, in taking on the second one [The Dark Knight], we had the challenge of trying to make a great second movie, and there haven’t been too many of those either. It’s all about the story really. If the story is there, everything is possible."
There are rumors all across the internet of what that story might be. Many suggest Catwoman, with Angelina Jolie as the most often discussed actress for the role, while certain news outlets such as the National Enquirer are convinced that Philip Seymour Hoffman and Johnny Depp are locked as the Penguin and Riddler respectively.
Nolan, on the other hand, doesn’t know much about what a sequel would entail. He admits that in filming The Dark Knight, his eyes weren’t set towards a third film, despite leaving The Joker alive.
"I only deal with one film at a time," states Nolan. "We’ve never attempted to save anything for a sequel or set up anything for a sequel. That seems improbable to some people because, particularly with Batman Begins, the film ended with a particular hook [with Jim Gordon showing Batman a Joker playing card announcing the arrival of a new villain in town]. But for me that was just about the excitement of people leaving the theater with the sense that now we have the character up and running. I wanted people to walk away with that sense in their head. You know, that he’s become the Batman in the movie. That’s why we had the title come up at the end, because it was Batman Begins, and it was all very specific to that. Then I got excited about seeing where that character would go. It was planned in advance, but it followed in that way."
But Nolan is thinking the same thing that the rest of us are: a sequel without Heath Ledger is almost unimaginable.
"Heath created the most extraordinary character that you would love to see 10 movies about," Nolan says. "That’s the bittersweet thing. It was incredible characterization. It is a bittersweet thing for all of us."
Still, there’s some hope that Nolan will return to Gotham City once again. Other than getting the story right, which shouldn’t be hard with the Nolan brothers and David Goyer in the Bat Cave, the director now has a taste for shooting films on grand IMAX scale, something he can’t do with his beloved smaller films.
"After Batman Begins I certainly felt like taking on something smaller, but one of the things I got such a thrill from on The Dark Knight was shooting on Imax and creating that massive scale and achieving that larger-than-life quality," Nolan says. "So that’s a lot of fun. I’m drawn in both directions now. So maybe what I need to do next is a very intimate, small story that happens to be photographed on a ridiculously large scale. Or vice versa [laughs]."
No matter what Nolan decides to do, it’s rather certain that Warner Bros. will make a follow up to their nearly $1 billion franchise. Fans will no doubt turn out in droves to see the second sequel, Nolan or nay, but we just can’t help fearing that a Nolan-less Batman 3 will go the way of the Schumacher.But Nolan is thinking the same thing that the rest of us are: a sequel without Heath Ledger is almost unimaginable.
But Nolan is thinking the same thing that the rest of us are: a sequel without Heath Ledger is almost unimaginable.Hardly.Nothing at all against Ledger's performance. But Why would you want to read Batman if the villain in every issue was always the same? If the franchise continues past a third movie, the Joker could make a return. But using the biggest gun every time becomes rapidly boring.
Agreed. Even if Ledger was still alive, I wouldn't want to see him play the Joker in the third movie. There are a lot of great characters in the Batman mythos that I'd love to see introduced first.Plus, I really want to see Tennant as the Riddler.
Just so as long as Cher's not casted as Selina Kyle a.k.a. Catwoman. ;-)
Total agreement with Sean. Every arch-enemy works best when you don't see him in comics every month. His presence can be felt in the background, but if he himself is physically confronted in every adventure, it gets tired and actually makes the hero seem ineffective.It could be fun to see Batman face a more supernatural-esque foe next time. Like, the main villain could be Black Mask, but the mobster could be employing Clayface and Man-Bat as genetically altered soldiers. It would definitely make for a different kind of super-hero film. With the arguable exception of Mr. Freeze, we've yet to see a Batman film where he fought a villain with powers.
I think that realistic villains makes this series stand out among other movies. Black Mask has a very believable background and would be an interesting antagonist in a future film. Though I don't think that clayface or even man-bat will make an appearance in the next film. The Riddler, and Bane, or Black Mask would each make for a promising movie.
Despite the success of Dark Knight, I feel the long term success of the Batman franchise lies not only in great stories (the most important factor actually) but in the use of a variety of villains. There are so many good foes in Batman's rogue's gallery – many of whom have never been in a Batman film. Different bad guys (or gals) in each film would keep the series fresh and provide a challenge for the film makers.I would stay away from Catwoman simply because she's been in two movies so far. She needs a rest. While I hated the Danny Devito version of Penguin, I'd hold off on this character as well. The Ventriloquist and Scarface would be excellent for the type of movie seen in this current cycle of films. There could be great mood and psychological exploration in such a film.These ideas are, of course, just my opinion.
They could easily bring back Two-Face if they wanted. Maybe he just got shipped off to Arkham in secret as they never actually showed his body at the funeral.Aaron Eckhart did such an awesome job that I wouldn't mind seeing him come in as the lead villain and then a new secondary villain like Catwoman.Also, Ramirez got a lucky toss which means she also knows the truth so there's all kinds of possibilities in a third film.I'd love to see them bring in the KGBeast in his prime since the Russian mafia has a presence in Gotham as shown in Dark Knight. It would give them a chance to try some more elaborate fight choreography and rooftop chase sequences beyond what's been done in the last two.
You guys mean to tell me that you wouldn't have loved to see another Batman film with multiple villains, including Joker in a bit role? There were rumors going around that a third Bat-film would have Ledger's Joker assisting Bats from behind bars in Arkham, ala Hannibal Lecter. No one would've digged that? I find that incredibly hard to believe, but I've certainly heard weirder. Personally, I don't love the Depp as Riddler, Hoffman as Penguin mumbo jumbo. What I would love to see, and think would work in Nolan's universe, is Hoffman as Penguin and Depp as Scarface / Ventriloquist in a turf war over Gotham City. Scarface is an eccentric, outside-the-box villain that, on the surface, doesn't seem a good fit ala Clayface; as in, too super-powered/supernatural. However, for Depp (or another great character actor) to really play up the schizophrenic angle of the Ventriloquist could be truly terrifying on film. Any thoughts?
Johnny depp as Riddler……..That would be awsome.
Joker doesn't need to be main, have him causing problems in Arkham is enough. Then he is in the background for a return down the road. You could unlock Harley Quinn, Riddler, Penguin (as there is a need for a new crime boss) with the Joker out of control. Nolan likes to go outside, but realistic, how about Talia al guhl.