B – 8 Things That Won’t Be in THE DARK KNIGHT RISES

If there’s one thing the Internet hates, it’s a vacuum. Christopher Nolan, co-writer and director of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight has been notoriously secretive about his films. Of course, that means the Internet has been rampant with rumors of all sorts of characters and storylines in the upcoming sequel, The Dark Knight Rises. In many ways, it’s easier to say what won’t be in The Dark Knight Rises than it is to say what will. And since we’re all about easy here at Geek Twins, that’s what we’ll do. Let’s put the nail in the coffin to these:

1.  The Joker – One of the biggest hairballs the rumor mill coughed up was that unused footage of Heath Ledger from The Dark Knight would be used in The Dark Knight Rises to bring the Joker back for a cameo in the third film. This actually would make some kind of sense, since the Joker proclaimed that he and Batman would be battling together “for a long time.” Yet Nolan was blunt about denying that rumor. I’m sure Nolan finds the idea of bringing Ledger back from the dead like that just as ghoulish as I do. 
2. Two-Face – Another rumor that began flying around was that, despite his very convincing death at the end of The Dark Knight, Harvey “Two-Face” Dent would be returning in the sequel. The rumors were flying so high that Aaron Eckhart, who played Dent, felt the need to ask Nolan personally if it was true. It wasn’t. Reportedly, Eckhart found it “heartbreaking” when Nolan told him that he wouldn’t be returning for Rises. So did we, Eckhart. So did we. 
3. Ra’s al Ghul – Somehow, the idea of Nolan bringing back long-deceased characters just won’t die. Yes, the rumors were flying that Liam Neeson (despite being trapped in an exploding elevated train in the end of Batman Begins) would be returning as Ra’s al Ghul in Rises. It’s not as implausible as one might think, since Ra’s al Ghul has a Lazarus Pit in the comics that can bring him back to life when he dies. However, Neeson confirmed that he hasn’t even been asked to reprise his role. Just as well.
4. Bane’s Lucha Libre Costume – Thanks to a rare press release, we know for sure that Batman’s arch-enemy Bane will be in Rises. We don’t know what Christopher Nolan’s Bane will be, but we do know what he won’t be: a Mexican wrestler. Bane’s familiar gimp mask and leotards are out of the question. When it was announced that Tom Hardy would be playing Bane in Rises, the first thing people asked about was the costume. Hardy humorously and quickly shot it down. That’s fine with me…never understood the connection between a bat and a wrestler, anyway.
5. 3-D – With the current fad er, “trend” towards making movies in 3-D, the question was asked if Rises would be in 3-D. Nolan has publicly stated that he’s not a big fan of 3-D, and also doesn’t think it’s a good fit with the dark visuals he’ll be trying to create. So Nolan confirmed he’ll be filming in good ol’ 2-D. No flying Batarangs hitting us in the face there…at least, not yet.
6. Superman – Fans have long anticipated seeing a live-action Batman meet the live-action Superman. Some hoped that since Nolan was working on a Superman reboot, he would at least put Superman into Rises as a cameo. Sadly, the long-awaited Batman/Superman crossover will not happen in Rises. Director Charles Roven stated that Batman and Superman inhabit a separate universe, and Nolan hasn’t disagreed.
7. The Riddler – In all the speculation about potential villains for the third Batman movie, the biggest candidate was the Riddler. That’s why rumors flew that Joseph Gordon-Leavitt would be playing the Riddler. While he has been confirmed as cast in Rises, his role has not. Yet Nolan went out of his way to squash the Riddler rumors. The only riddle left is the actual ending.
8. A Cliffhanger Ending – When the credits roll on The Dark Knight Rises, we need have no fear that Nolan may pull a twist and leave Batman hanging for a fourth film. Sadly, Nolan has stated that this will be the last time he directs a Batman movie. After this, the studio plans to reboot Batman in an entirely new direction, so there won’t be any continuation of the current storyline. Hopefully, Rises will be as great as the other two, creating a truly epic and glorious trilogy of films. And we can take comfort in the fact that Nolan will be producing the next Batman film, so he’ll keep it from spinning out of control. Nipples, anyone?

So there we have it. Eight things that are absolutely, positively not going to be in The Dark Knight Rises. Then again, with Christopher Nolan’s love of misdirection, maybe we’ll be proven wrong here, too.

Anything else we know won’t be in Rises? Anything you still hope will be? Let us know in the comments.

This post is “B is for Batman,” part of the “A-Z Blogging Challenge.” We’ll be posting something on our blog every day in April except for Sundays. The challenge is hosted by Arlee Bird , Jeffrey Beesler, Alex J. Cavanaugh, Jen Daiker, Candace Ganger, Karen J Gowen, Talli Roland and Stephen Tremp. Visit them today and everyday for the next month!

[Image Source: Moviesdx.com]