Dane Cook for The Riddler in Batman 3?

It's still unclear whether director Christopher Nolan will be returning for a third chapter in the Batman revamp, let alone what villain(s) will square off against the Dark Knight. Still, there have been rumors for months now that The Riddler will make a return appearance some fifteen years after Jim Carrey portrayed the character in Batman Forever.

Everyone from Eddie Murphy, to Johnny Depp to Curb Your Enthusiasm funnyman Larry David have been mentioned in connection to the roll of Edward Nigma, the villain who compulsively confesses to his crimes in riddle form. So when MTV recently sat down with actor and comedian Dane Cook (My Best Friend's Girl), they asked him if he would be interested in the part.

If they brought back The Riddler — a new Riddler the way they did with The Joker — that would be badass. I would do that.

When they were making the new one and they were doing The Joker, I always thought it [should be] kind of like The Crow — having that dark element but still comedic. It would probably have to be something in that vein, even though I think what Heath Ledger did with the Joker was the greatest comic book villain ever.

Cook also said that he would like to star in "anything sci-fi or comic book related," but that he hasn't been auditioning because he has been on tour.

Cillian Murphy "Hopes" For a Batman 3

Cillian Murphy recently told MTV that he hopes "they make a third [Batman]." The actor portrayed the villain Scarecrow in both Batman Begins and The Dark Knight.

[The Dark Knight is] one of the greatest blockbuster mainstream movies. If anyone can match that or top that it's [director] Chris [Nolan]. Fingers crossed.
Murphy is currently working with Nolan on his mysterious thriller, Inception. However, that doesn't mean Murphy has heard anything about Nolan's return for Batman 3.

We don't talk about those things. It's out of my control.

Kevin Smith Would Like Some Hamm with His Superman or Batman

Writer-director, and genuine comic book geek, Kevin Smith told MTV that he thinks actor Jon Hamm has serious superhero potential.

That dude could play Batman and Superman. "That's the weird thing. You look at him and he's got a f---ing Superman look, but he's got a Batman thing going on, too.

A few years ago, they were like, "Let's do that Batman/Superman movie." Do it. Hire that motherf***er to play both roles.... He could pull it off. I'd buy it.

Smith was convinced of Hamm's superhero quality by watching Hamm's work as ad executive Don Draper on Mad Men.

He's always brooding on that show. He comes off like Bruce Wayne. That voice of his — the Don Draper voice — that's f***ing Batman! If you were in an alley and that motherf***er Jon Hamm was wearing that outfit and came up to you and he was like, "Gimme a cigarette," you'd be like, "Oh my god, I'm going to give up crime ... and living!"
Sadly, for Smith at least, Christian Bale will be playing Bruce Wayne/Batman in Batman 3, should it ever get made . Smith can keep his fingers crossed for Hamm to play Superman. Warner Bros. has "no current plans" to make one, though.

Michael Caine Says No Johnny Depp in Batman 3

Michael Caine may be in hot water again. He got in trouble when he confirmed rumors with MTV that Johnny Depp would play The Riddler and Philip Seymour Hoffman would play The Penguin in Batman 3. At the time, Caine said:

When Christopher [Nolan] said we were going to do The Dark Knight next, I didn't [know] what that meant in Batman terms. I said, "What's the story?" and he said The Joker. I said, "Oh, s**t! How are you going to top Jack [Nicholson]?" He said, "Well, I've cast Heath Ledger. And I went "Ha! I couldn't top Jack, but if anyone could, maybe Heath could." And he did.

I was with [a Warner Bros.] executive and I said, "Are we going to make another one?" They said yeah. I said, "How the hell are we going to top Heath?" And he says "I'll tell you how you top Heath — Johnny Depp as The Riddler and Philip Seymour Hoffman as The Penguin." I said, "S**t, they've done it again!" [Laughs]

A year later, Caine is trying to do damage control, speaking with MTV again, and refuting those same newspaper rumors he was so quick to confirm.

Johnny Depp is great in anything, but there is no Johnny Depp in this Batman. They tell me in no uncertain terms.
Depp has claimed he'd "juggle" his schedule for the chance to appear in Batman 3, though there's little reason to worry about that now, since Caine says there's little chance that Batman 3 will see the light of day soon.

There is nobody, there's no script, there's nothing. It can't possibly be made before 2011 because [Nolan's upcoming thriller] Inception is such a big picture.
Of course, after all the trouble he made last year, Caine is currently the last man to know anything about Batman 3.

[They] won't tell me anything because I said this before. No one will tell me anything now. They say, "Don't tell Michael, he'll tell everybody."

Batman 3 to Shoot This Year?

Rumors about Batman 3 just can't be stopped. A weeks after reports claimed that David Goyer and Jonah Nolan are writing the script for the third Batman installment, reports have surfaced that the movie may start shooting by the end of this year. According to The Moving Image, the news comes from an unlikely place: the set of John Landis' upcoming Burke and Hare, where an anonymous crew member informed the site of the possibility of shooting this year.

In the earlier post about the Burke and Hare film shoot, I mentioned a source's experience with Christopher Nolan on the Batman films and Inception. I forgot to mention that he also said sets will soon be constructed, for the third Batman, with the possibility of shooting toward the end of the year.
Batman-on-Film confirmed the rumor with another rumor, claiming a source told the fan site that scouting has begun in Chicago for Batman 3.

[They] have been out and about in Chicago's Financial District.
Neither of these reports have been confirmed and should only be considered rumors at this time.

MAJOR Batman 3 Announcements Made: The Title! The Villain! And a Robin Actor Revealed!

A British rag, known more for its page 3 pics of topless babes than for hard news, is announcing some major exclusive scoops today. Among them are the chosen title for Batman 3 and the actors who will play The Riddler and Robin! How did this get by us?

I know... I know... This is total Bull@#%*! I don't know how this paper stays in business as a news source. But how could we not report this? It's just too funny. Check out the pic of Eddie.

UPDATED: 1/17/2010 - As prophesied, no sooner did this story go up, when it was immediately debunked by CinemaBlend sources. But really, did ANYONE actually believe this rubbish?

Eddie is Riddler in new Batman
By GORDON SMART and JESS ROGERS



FUNNYMAN EDDIE MURPHY will play The Riddler in the next Batman movie, The Sun can reveal.

The Beverly Hills Cop star, 47, has been signed up by British director CHRISTOPHER NOLAN to reprise the role played by JIM CARREY in 1995’s Batman Forever.

The surprise move follows speculation linking Pirates of the Caribbean star JOHNNY DEPP to the part.

The film, set for a 2010 release, is being developed under the working title Gotham.

Execs have also signed up rising Transformers star SHIA LABEOUF, 22, to play Robin.

CHRISTIAN BALE will return as Bruce Wayne, while MICHAEL CAINE will again play Bruce’s assistant Alfred.

Meanwhile, Brit RACHEL WEISZ is said to be up for the Catwoman role.

Insiders also revealed to The Sun the flick will end on a cliffhanger over whether Batman survives a blast at Wayne Towers.

Nolan had been tight-lipped about the future of the Batman films after being rocked by the January death of HEATH LEDGER — tipped to receive a posthumous Oscar for his role as The Joker in Batman Returns.

A film insider said: “Chris wasn’t sure if he wanted to do another movie but as soon as he decided to, he got the wheels in motion.

“Eddie’s a fantastic addition. Everyone’s excited to see what he does as the Riddler.”

Batman 3 Speculations

So what do we call the Dark Knight sequel?… The Dark Knight 2? Batman Begins 3? Batman 3? Batman 7? If you count Adam West’s movie it’s Batman 8 and Tim Burton’s Batman was a remake.
Minor spoilers ahead…

Will the Joker disappear from the next movie or be recast? When Gary Oldman was asked recently, he made an interesting point, “They recast Katie Holmes’ character. I understand that this is a different circumstance, but I think another actor could do the job. I think Heath would want another actor to do the job.”

But Gary went on… “Maybe we don’t need the Joker. Because we’ll have The Riddler.”

…Personally, I’d like to see a new take on the Penguin too. But the writers have hinted they will avoid Penguin and Catwoman in favour of some of the many other villains from Batman’s 69 year history. After all Scarecrow and Ra’s Al Ghul hadn’t been seen on the big screen until Batman Begins.

Don’t expect to see Robin either. Christian Bale is not keen on the idea at all. On the press tour he remarked, “If Robin crops up in one of the new Batman films, I’ll be chaining myself up somewhere and refusing to go to work.”

Oh and that’s right, Bale said “new Batman films”. Plural. Sounds like he’s planning on staying around for a while…

Which villains would you like to see in Batman Begins 3? The Riddler? Penguin? Catwoman? Maybe Bane? Harley Quinn? Mr. Freeze? Poison Ivy? Ventriloquist?