List of Possible Batman Villains for Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight Rises”

Dr. Hugo Strange

Who is he? Dr. Hugo Strange was one of Batman’s first recurring villains, alongside the likes of The Joker, Catwoman, and the Penguin. However, he never quite reached the heights of the aforementioned characters, and is mainly a background villain in Gotham. Strange is a mad scientist with a genius level IQ, who creates a serum that turns men into “Monster Men”. These men turn into mindless superhumans, which he uses to pay back debts and incur havoc in Gotham

What works? On paper Dr. Hugo Strange is similar to Jonathan Crane, AKA The Scarecrow. Both men created serums that had unexpected outcomes, in which they use for gain. The character could easily be retooled as another Arkham scientist who plays with his subjects much like Crane did in Batman Begins. Once again, if Nolan is bringing back characters he could always pair The Scarecrow and Strange up.

What doesn’t? Nolan’s films are based in a bit more reality than previous Batman films, and men with hulking strength and cannibalistic natures might ruin the image Nolan has tried to create with the Gotham trilogy. Strange might also be a bit too close to The Scarecrow as a character archetype, and it might come off as Nolan repeating earlier works.

Chances of being “Rises” villain? 2/5

Black Mask

Who is he? Roman Sionis is a more recent villain in the ongoing Batman Series. Taking the moniker the Black Mask, Sionis is criminal mastermind who controls most of Gotham’s seedy underbelly. Sionis was a failed business man who had to be bailed out by Bruce Wayne. Angered by Wayne pushing him out of his company, Sionis made a black mask from the ebony lid of his father’s coffin and founded the “False Face Society”.

What works? In 2005 many people questioned Nolan’s unconventional choice in a villain, when he selected Liam Neeson as Ra’s Al Ghul. While well known to the fans, the character was not well known in pop culture. This scenario could likely occur again with the choice of Black Mask.  Nolan clearly favors deep crime dramas, and Black Mask as the main villain could easily keep that theme going. In addition to this is the fact that he is an easily believable villain. There isn’t a lot that is too far fetched about the character, and he could easily fit within the world Nolan has created.

What doesn’t? There aren’t really a lot of negatives to this choice. Black Mask is just as solid in his criminal undertakings, as Batman is in his heroic endeavors. As long as they keep his mask just a mask, rather than burn it onto his face, like in the comics, he should make a solid choice.

Chances of being “Rises” villain? 4/5

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Blake Fehl

Member of the St. Louis Film Critics Association. Co-Founder of Saint Brewis and Review St. Louis. Digital Strategist by day, film/beer/hockey fanatic by night.

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  • I would venture a guess that like the other two films the title may be a double entendre and reference something like the the death or disappearance and subsequent resurrection of Batman. If it were up to me, I'd like to see the mafia side of the story arc played out more and include the Black Mask as its new leader. Maybe throw in some Zsasz a la Hannibal Letter as a secondary villain and I think you'd have a hell of a movie. Perhaps a Jason Statham style Bane could be thrown in as the one who is responsible for finally doing in the Bat. Now I'm just rambling.

  • We seem to be forgetting Scarecrow. I personally think Black Mask is a good Villain to continue with the mob idea, but are they going to do the story of him getting burned and using his mothers ebony coffin lid as the mask? I think Scarecrow may end up being a player in the movie somehow, and they may choose to bring back Two-Face. I know he "died" at the end of the Dark Knight, but it could have been a token funeral. A symbol of the death of Harvey Dent and the birth of Two-Face. For all we know, Harvey is stuck in a cell at Arkham.
    Hugo Strange is a good idea too, they need to focus a little on Arkham Asylum, about the structure and corruption of it after Dr. Crane left. I doubt Bane is going to be a villain,I just cant see Tom Hardey playing him, but then, Nolan is good at turning these iconic characters into his own vision and revamping them for our time period.
    One thing I know, is that the underlying tone will be an emotion of Batman. Batman Begins was about his fear, The Dark Knight was about his doubt. What about The Dark Knight Rises? Bruce has over came his fear and has accepted being Batman, I'm sure it'll be too early to introduce Catwoman, Bruce is still healing after the death of Rachel, and as we all know Batman, he takes time to heal after a trauma. But one thing I know, is Batman is going to have to face something as dangerous if not more so than the Joker.

  • Maybe DarkSied and Desaad(weak but evil genius) will return from from the fourth deminsion. Might be be too much because they can punk Superman around a bit. Batman doesn't stand a chance. Won't probably happen even though Batman shoots Darkseid with the same Radion bullet that killed Orion, while Darkseid simultaneously hits Batman with the Omega Sanction, "infecting" Batman with Omega energy that will cause him to jump forward in time, with disastrous results when he reaches the present. Darkseid is mortally wounded, but not before his Omega Sanction teleports Batman into prehistoric times. Remains believed to be Batman's (later revealed to be the last of the many Batman clones that Darkseid created).

  • Bane is a Modern English word meaning "that which causes ruin or woe", from the Old English bana ("slayer", "murderer"), from the Proto-Germanic *banon, cognate with *banja ("wound").

    At the ending scene of The Dark Knight, Batman requests of Gordon that he be labled the murderer responsible of Dent's crimes to keep Gotham's criminals at Arkham and Blackgate.

    Further Disambiguation is that Bane is also the name of a genus of plant that is highly venomous (Henbane, Wolfsbane, Leopard's Bane, ect.) Possible allusion directly to Bane and indirectly Ivy?

    Tom Hardy I hear was cast as having a major role and has played in exceptional films like Nolan's Inception and a British movie about Britain's most violent inmate, a Charles Bronson, entitled respectively as Bronson. Bane is a most exclusively violent and highly calculating and ingenious character from the comics, as he was able to deduce Batman's identity as well as nearly "breaking" him to death and in the BTAS as well as TNBA he did come quite close to killing him.

    But it is plausible that maybe Hardy could be cast as Black Mask? I can see that.

    I kinda can also picture this: Theron as a expert cat-burgler named Catwomen respectively (thinking Aeon Flux) as some anti-hero love interest. Bane (due to background in prison life, drug involvement with Venom, South American heritage, physical prowess and genius) could be in Nolan's universe a very powerful South American Drug Lord of the top Cartel machine, his latest product "Venom" is concocted by a scientist (possibly kidnapped and held hostage) Pamala Isely (will she become Poison Ivy in some way? Maybe, maybe not how we've seen her portrayed, maybe it could be a pseudonym) who could be Farmiga. The Venom has it's respective properties and attributes with it being sold as a steroid to first military for super soldiers and then somehow to athletes, which soon get's discovered for it's often hazardous and dangerous side effects. Or maybe Black Mask (I could totally see Daniel Day Lewis play this character and will cite most spectacular and phenominal performances in Gangs of New York and There Will be Blood) is Kingpin of this large operation over Bane and other Cartels and can use him as a hitman (Like the Montana and Sosa relationship in Scarface).

    I can also picture this occuring much like how I described and have it mixed with the The New Batman Adventures episode "Over the Edge" and the "Knightfall" comic story.
    But this is just my own speculation and take. We all saw in Batman Begins the ending was a clear allusion to the Joker however the Dark Knight was not so clear. We'll just wait and see.

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