20 facts you might not know about 'The Dark Knight Rises'

Way back in 2005, David S. Goyer wrote treatments for two Joker films. The second would have seen Joker turning Harvey Dent into Two-Face. Of course, as we know, that ended up in The Dark Knight, as those two stories got combined. Joker was still alive at the end of The Dark Knight, but Heath Ledger tragically died. Nolan had no interest in recasting the role, out of respect for Ledger.

Nolan figured he’d be done after two Batman movies. In fact, he has written that he didn’t even think a third film would be possible. Nolan also wondered aloud how many good third films in series there had been. In the end, he declared he would only make a third Batman film if he found a story that made it worthwhile.

Executives at Warner Bros. wanted a particular villain to be at the center of The Dark Knight Rises: Riddler. They liked the idea of using Riddler because he was similar to Joker, and Leonardo DiCaprio was suggested for the role. Nolan wasn’t interested in that, though, and wanted a villain entirely different from Joker. Hence, Bane.

You may have forgotten — or just wanted to forget — but The Dark Knight Rises was not Bane’s first foray into cinema. In Batman & Robin, the worst Batman movie by almost any measure, Bane is a tertiary character. Played by Robert “Jeep” Swenson, this version of Bane wasn’t like his comic-book portrayal at all. He’s a monster who barely speaks and is given his super strength from “Venom,” a chemical flowing into his brain.

The Dark Knight Rises is something of an amalgamation of three Batman stories from the comics. The Dark Knight Returns sees Batman return after a 10-year absence. No Man’s Land is about Gotham City being cut off from the rest of the world. Knightfall is probably the quintessential Bane story arc from the comics, and much of his presentation in this movie is based on that.

When Nolan put his touches on the story, he was influenced by a notable novel of a bygone era. That would be A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. Commissioner Gordon even quotes from A Tale of Two Cities in his eulogy for Bruce Wayne.

Goyer has a “story by” credit along with Christopher Nolan’s brother, Jonathan. But Goyer couldn’t really work on the script as he was working on Man of Steel. The Nolan brothers share screenwriting credit, but Jonathan handled the first draft. He turned in a script that was 400 pages long. Traditionally, one page equals one minute of screentime, so, yeah, it would have been a long film without some editing.

Hardy was cast as Bane, and he did what he could to become physically imposing. The actor put on 30 pounds to bulk up to 200 pounds. And, of course, Hardy put together his distinct voice he used for Bane as well. Part of his inspiration there was the bare-knuckle boxing legend Bartley Gorman.

Hardy stands 5’9’’, which isn’t short, but it also isn’t tall. That’s notable when playing a hulking character. Hardy had to wear three-inch lifts just to look imposing enough to battle Bale as Batman. Even so, Bane is described as being between 6’8’’ and 6’11’’ in the comics.

Nolan didn’t hide the fact that Anne Hathaway was playing Catwoman (as opposed to the fact Cotillard is playing Talia). However, within the course of the movie, she’s never called “Catwoman” explicitly. She’s called Selina Kyle, and even the mysterious burglar is referred to as “The Cat” by newspapers.

Hathaway really wanted the role of Selina Kyle, but she had some stiff competition. Several actresses auditioned for the role, and Hathaway, Jessica Biel, and Kate Mara all had screen tests for the role before Hathaway won out.

The football game that Bane interrupts was filmed at Heinz Field, where the Pittsburgh Steelers play. As such, several Steelers have cameos as members of the Gotham City Rogues. That includes Ben Roethlisberger, Troy Polamalu, Hines Ward, and coach Bill Cowher.

Lennon, an actor primarily known for comedy, plays a doctor in The Dark Knight Rises. It’s not the first time he’s done that for Nolan. Lennon also played a doctor in his breakthrough film Memento.

OK, so there is no giant prison in a hole in the ground anywhere that we know of. All that stuff was filmed on a set. That being said, the exteriors around the prison had to be filmed somewhere. That somewhere was Jodhpur, India, specifically the Merangarh Fort.

The Dark Knight Rises with Bane and his cohorts pulling off a daring plane escape, which Nolan shot in IMAX. The whole scene was screened prior to IMAX screenings of I Am Legend. While people liked it by and large, they also noted that Tom Hardy was largely unintelligible as Bane. This led to some of his lines being rerecorded.

Nolan had worked with Cotillard in Inception, and he really wanted her to play Miranda Tate (a.k.a .Talia al Ghul) in The Dark Knight Rises. Cotillard was pregnant and wasn’t sure she would be able to do it, but he kept her in the movie anyway. She began shooting just one month after giving birth. Also, he allowed her to shoot the film Rust and Bone in France simultaneously as well.

Give credit to costume designer Lindy Hemming for her dedication to the cause. She put a lot of work into the design for Bane’s coat, which was inspired by Swedish Army jackets and frock coats from the French Revolution. Getting it right took a while, as Hemming worked on designing the jacket for two years.

Oftentimes, when you are shooting something and when it’s supposed to be taking place don’t coincide. Take the football scene from The Dark Knight Rises, for example. Football is a fall and winter sport, and the cast and extras are all decked out in winter clothes, including heavy coats. That may have made for a miserable shooting day. It was filmed during the midst of a heat wave in Pittsburgh.

When it is unveiled that Talia is the one who escaped the prison as a child, we see Bane is already an adult. That makes the character of Bane several years older than Talia at the very least. However, Hardy is actually two years younger than Cotillard in real life.

Nolan’s decision to return to the world of Batman paid off. Working with a massive budget between $250 and $300 million, the film made over $1 billion worldwide. That being said, it finished second in the North American box office behind The Avengers, and third worldwide behind The Avengers and Skyfall.