"Johnny Depp as The Riddler and Philip Seymour Hoffman as The Penguin"

[kay1864]

According to Michael Caine:

"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, 'Shit, they've done it again!' "

http://www.mtvasia.com/News/200809/09016566.html

[Shell Beau]

1. Hoffman is great at every character he does.

[racaulk]

4. Agreed.

He has acting talent in spades. I haven't seen him in any movie where I wasn't amazed by his talent and where I didn't fall in love with his character.

Except for when he was in "Along Came Polly."

[Shell Beau]

7. Even in Along Came Polly he was great.

To me, it just shows his range. He can be so serious and then be so damned goofy.

[racaulk]

8. Yeah, I guess I can see that.

I suppose my dislike was more for the character and not the actor. That character was just so weaselly and gross, that I almost couldn't stand watching him. But then again, if Hoffman can make me feel those things with his performance, then that speaks to the quality of his acting.

And I suppose credit is due to Hoffman for adding the word "shart" to our public lexicon...even though that is gross. :rofl:

But hands down my favorite performance of his was opposite Robert Deniro in "Flawless." He was just brilliant in that role!

[MrScorpio]

2. I can see that

Bring 'em on

[Fighting Donkey]

3. Even this is a rumor.

Michael is confused. They haven't even resigned Chris Nolan to direct. I can tell you this as a die-hard ("nerd") Batman fan. And they're not going to top Ledger, so I'm wondering why try?

[kay1864]

5. Or more likely, the WB exec was talking out of his ass

I've heard they do that on occasion :)

[Fighting Donkey]

6. Or that.

:)

[SteppingRazor]

9. Plus, there's a reason the Riddler and the Penguin made few appearances in the Batman comics...

after it took on a darker edge. The characters are too cartoony. As the new Batman movies are more like the more-recent, darker Batman comics, I really doubt they'd use Riddler and Penguin. Such silly villains make no sense in the new series. I think better bets would be Black Mask, or maybe Bane.

[DS1]

11. Yes!

For God's sake, do something new! No fucking Riddler! No goddamn PENGUIN!

[Fighting Donkey]

12. A fellow fan ("nerd")?

I love the idea of Black Mask. And you could do a Riddler similar to the real-life Zodiac killer. Also Penguin could be more of a mobster than *shudder* Danny DeVito's interpretation.

[SteppingRazor]

14. That's true, either of the characters could be given a darker edge...

I just think it's easier to pull off with other villains. And the new series has already shown that it's willing to focus on some of the more-minor villains that may be unfamiliar outside the comic book world. After all, the first film focused on Scarecrow and Ra's al Ghul, and if your only familiarity with Batman is the movies and TV show, you'd have no clue who those guys are. That's why I think they'd be willing to go with someone like Black Mask, who would probably make a better crime-lord type for the purposes of these movies than Penguin would.

As for a Zodiac-type killer, hell, you could do that with Cluemaster or even the freakin' Calendar Man, widely regarding as the worst Batman villain of all time. But that wouldn't make it right. :)

Point being, I just don't think that those sorts of villains fit into the new series of movies unless you sort of force them in by redefining them, and it's better not to fit a square peg in a round hole, you know?


Ok, I'm done nerding out now. :P

[Rabrrrrrr]

10. Please, God, let it not be so. Please let it not be so.

It'll be the end of the franchise.

[Celeborn Skywalker]

18. You think?

It seems like two interesting choices for the characters. I guess we'll see how it all works out.

[Rabrrrrrr]

19. The last franchise lost it as soon as they decided that one villain wasn't enough.

One villain per movie. That's it.

PLUS - Riddler and Penguin are both too cartoony; though if the Penguin is done properly, as the truly homicidal maniac with respect for life that he is in the better Batman comics, he could make for a wonderful villain in a movie.

But only if he's the only villain.

[Tuesday Afternoon]

13. hmmmm...interesting. we must take the wait and see approach..

what could develop may well be a masterpiece.

[geomon666]

15. Both actors have already said the rumors are crap.

Move on people.

[SoxFan]

16. Oh, crap. I'm screwn!

I've been told on more than one occasion that I resemble Philip Seymour Hoffman. Being told you look like a guy who is portraying a character previously played by such studs as Danny Devito and Burgess meredith can not be a good thing!

[ghostsofgiants]

17. Hoffman is brilliant.