Bane: Why This Batman Villain?

We cannot wait for the next Batman movie to come out! “The Dark Knight Rises” has announced the cast. And the villains? Bane and Catwoman.

Bane will be played by Tom Hardy and Catwoman by Anne Hathaway.

But, of all the villains that could be used in “The Dark Knight Rises,” why Bane?

We have seen Bane in another Batman movie: he was a sidekick to Uma Thurman’s Poison Ivy. He has immense strength that comes from the poison venom. He’s powerful and intelligent.

But, is he the first villain you think of when you think of Batman? Obviously, the Joker has to be out. There’s the Riddler, Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy, Two-face, the Penguin, Clayface, and tons more.

In any case, we’ll eagerly await the release of “The Dark Knight Rises,” schedule for release in July 2012.

Photo: PRPhotos

Tom Hardy: 'The Dark Knight Rises' Bane will have to put on weight.

"Batman" fans might be concerned with recently cast "Inception" actor Tom Hardy -- and his lithe frame --- taking on the overly-muscled villain Bane. But fear not, he's quite good at packing it on for a role.

The polar opposite of "The Dark Knight Rises" star Christian Bale (who famously dropped to a dangerously thin size for "The Machinist" and "The Fighter"), Hardy has been called upon to bulk up twice before.

"Bronson," the 2008 biopic of notorious British prisoner Charles Bronson, required Hardy add body mass to the point where he was barely recognizable.

And later in 2011, Hardy will also unveil a similarly bulked-up frame for "A Warrior's Heart."

Filming for Christopher Nolan's third and final installment in the "Batman" franchise is set to start filming in the spring, so we imagine he's in a gym somewhere right now, protein shake in hand.

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Photo/Video credit: Vertigo, DC