Anne Hathaway as Catwoman? Tom Hardy as Bane? The Dark Knight Rises News

Warner Bros. Pictures announced today that Anne Hathaway has been cast as Selina Kyle (AKA Catwoman) in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises. She will be starring alongside Christian Bale, who returns in the title role of Bruce Wayne/Batman.

Christopher Nolan stated, "I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Anne Hathaway, who will be a fantastic addition to our ensemble as we complete our story."

In addition, Tom Hardy has been set to play Bane. Nolan said, "I am delighted to be working with Tom again and excited to watch him bring to life our new interpretation of one of Batman’s most formidable enemies."

Nolan will direct the film from a screenplay he wrote with Jonathan Nolan, from a story by Christopher Nolan and David S. Goyer. Nolan will also produce the film with his longtime producing partner, Emma Thomas, and Charles Roven.

The Dark Knight Rises is slated for release on July 20, 2012. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

Batman 3 title revealed! No Riddler?

Big news from Gotham. L.A. Times reveal the title of Christopher Nolan's third Batman movie(which is set to be a trilogy). Its title is "THE DARK KNIGHT RISES" And the film's release has also been set to rise on July 2012.

In addition, Nolan went on to dispell what many had begun to assume to be a given – “It won’t be the Riddler,” reports L.A.Times' blog Hero Complex. So easy to get ahead of yourself, isn't it? Of course, true to form, the director wouldn’t reveal who it would be.

What Nolan seemed most interested in imparting was that he’s convinced Warner Bros. to keep telling his story in 2D, and to continue down the path of hi-def IMAX sequences. And he’ll get no argument from us on the subject – if it ain't broke, etc.

The post contains one other potentially juicy, enigmatic Nolan quote: “We’ll use many of the same characters as we have all along, and we’ll be introducing some new ones.”

If it's not Riddler, then there are still so many characters out there that are still in Nolan's Gotham. Two-Face could still be alive, Scarecrow is still alive, Zsasz may still be out running free, and the League of Shadows could return just to complete a circle from the first movie. Since Nolan's Batman series is grounded, we could put in a more realistic (& more based on the original comicbook concept) Penguin and Catwoman. We all know now that Tom Hardy is the new guy to join in on Nolan's Gotham universe. He could play a new character like Deadshot, Black Mask, Firefly, or Doctor Hugo Strange. Well at least we trust Nolan to do what's best for the series. Let's just hope this third movie will not be hit by the same jinx that hit Spider-man 3, Blade 3, and X-men 3!