With The Dark Knight Rises just around the corner and anticipation building just as quickly as it’s predecessor, we felt here at SuperHeroHype that we should go back and look at the series as a whole. Since this is the final chapter of the series and they happen to be some of the most epic films being made, why don’t we take a walk down memory lane and peek at the flicks, but not in the way you’d expect. Yeah we could sit here and do a retrospective about them dissecting all of the intricate plot details and all the references to other Batman lore, but we’ll save that for another day if there is any interest. Today we’ll be looking back at the movies, their popularity, and myths about them and hopefully be presenting you with a list of things related to the series that you probably didn’t know.
#1 CASTING CHANGES
I think we can all agree that the casting behind Nolan’s entire Dark Knight trilogy are some of the most brilliantly devised casting decisions in the past thirty years. This was all intentional as Nolan wanted to make a film with an A-list ensemble cast like the old epic films of the 50s. But there was a time when the cast wasn’t as well devised and constructed as it is now. For example, one of Batman’s first partners almost had a totally different look – Kurt Russell was considered for the role of Jim Gordon. Yup, Snake Plissken himself almost donned the mustache and police badge. What we’ve got in the current series through Gary Oldman’s portrayal is a sympathetic, hard working, and very human Jim Gordon and I fear if Kurt had the part he would have been rivaling Batman in terms of his sheer badassery.
One casting choice that almost was that makes total sense was Anthony Hopkins as Alfred, unfortunately he turned the role down.
A casting change story wouldn’t be complete if it didn’t touch on the main character of the films, Bruce Wayne. Two men that originally auditioned for the role whose names you should recognize are Billy Crudup and Henry Cavill. The eventual Dr. Manhattan and Superman actors tried out to be the Caped Crusader. Obviously they didn’t get it, but in the long run they got their wish of being superheroes.
(Kurt Russell photo: Apega/WENN.com)
