Batman Cameo Rumors Bring Cheshire Smile To Christopher Nolan's Face At Hugh Jackman Salute

Christopher Nolan Hugh Jackman American Museum of the Moving Image

Hugh Jackman is way more emo than I thought.

But I'll get to that in a moment.  Among the filmmakers who turned up to praise the Les Misérables star at the Museum of the Moving Image's salute to Jackman in lower Manhattan on Tuesday night was The Dark Knight Rises director Christopher Nolan who grew an enormous Cheshire-Cat grin when I asked him if the Superman reboot he is producing, Man of Steel, would see a cameo by Joseph Gordon-Levitt, or any actor, as Batman, and if he had any objections to a cameo as a continuity move to tie the Supes movie to the 2015 Justice League movie. 

"I can't talk about that.  You know that," Nolan said cheerily. I didn't know that, actually, but now that I do, I feel compelled to point out that, despite the frustratingly inconclusive nature of his answer, it's not a 'No.'  Yes, JG-L's camp shot down the speculation as "entirely false" back in November, but if the idea had been ruled out, wouldn't Nolan be saying something along those lines, too, so that the fan boys could move on? You know how angry they can get when their casting hopes and dreams are suddenly deflated after being allowed to build for months.

The impish smile on Nolan's face as he issued that no comment also heightened my optimism, especially in the wake of the powerful Man of Steel trailer that's now burning up the Internet. Zack Snyder's take on Superman clearly aspires to have the kind of psychological heft and dark undertones that made The Dark Knight trilogy so satisfying. If the movie attains or even approaches those standards, a JG-L Batman cameo  would not dishonor Nolan's work and it would set the bar high for Justice League . No pressure, Warner Bros.

Nolan, Hathaway, Weisz Honor Jackman At Museum of The Moving Image Fete

Getting back to Jackman, who's on the fast-track to a Best Actor Oscar nomination, Nolan had much more to say about  the actor, who he directed along with Christian Bale in The Prestige.  The filmmaker told guests at the Museum of the Moving Image fete that though "ruthless" is not a word usually associated with Jackman, The Wolverine star is indeed "ruthless creatively" and a performer "driven by intense ambition."  The director also said that he looked forward to working with Jackman again, "probably not on a musical though," despite Jackman's urging him to direct one.

Also praising Jackman were his wife, actress Deborra-Lee Furness, his X-Men Origins: Wolverine co-star Liev Schreiber, director Mike Nichols, former Saturday Night Live cast member Rachel Dratch, who got big laughs mocking Jackman's Australian dialect and  two of his Les Misérables co-stars Anne Hathaway and Eddie Redmayne.

In an effusive, rambling speech, Hathaway called Jackman "deep as the sea."

Rachel Weisz offered up an even more intriguing description of the actor, calling him an "incredible cocktail of light and dark."  She also told the most revealing story of the night:  During the filming of The Fountain, which was directed by her ex-husband Darren Aronofsky, Weisz said that Jackman gave himself so completely to a scene in which his character realizes he's going to die that "he sobbed for about half an hour after the cameras stopped" while Weisz comforted him.  "He'd gone to the deepest, darkest place a person can go," she said. "And he wasn't faking it."

Jackman kept his speech much lighter saying that his Christmas gift wish list was a simple one.   All he wanted, he said, was "a movie with me starring in it to open on Christmas Day."

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Comments

  • Ross Lincoln says:

    It's worth noting that Marion Cotillard straight-up lied* about the fact that her TDKR character was a villain several times during the promotion of the film while it was still in production. I do not trust any specific denials coming out of a Nolan production as a result.

    * Not accusing her of being evil, only accusing Nolan of having employed deliberate disinformation, which is a good move for marketing and building-speculation purposes.

    • Frank DiGiacomo says:

      Excellent point, Ross. What does your gut tell you right now? Will there be a Bats cameo? And if so, what are the chances that JG-L wears the cowl? Or was Nolan's smile deliberate disinformation?

  • Who doesn't love Hugh Jackman?

  • Jon says:

    Nolan probably smiled at how ridiculous the question was. JGL is NOT Batman. For the love of God, the whole idea of that final scene was Bruce handing over his resources to an ordinary citizen; the loop had been completed; he wanted to inspire the people to take over. It has nothing with JGL dressing up as Batman and being Batman. Small minded morons just don't seem to get it. Batman will be rebooted with another actor taking on the role. End of story.

  • rudy desi says:

    I think theres something brewing in the dc camp.
    First..nolans been very quiet choppy with comments. A secret is being held.
    My opinion if nolan is tied to justice league even as a producer bale could be in it as well as jgl. It wont be another batman movie..
    We wont know fursure till man of steel movie.
    Cant wait for this unfolding surprise

  • TJ says:

    Jon i think i have to agree with frank here because i think you missed some major points in the movie. Bruce telling Blake that batman was a simple that could be any body not just Wayne. Also how he said that if he was going to fight he should wear a mask to protect the people he cares about. It would also not be that far fetched to make robin batman in Nolan's universe because in the comics both Dick Grayson and Tim Drake took over the persona of Batman. Im not saying that JGL will end up being batman but it is not that far of a stretch to at least play with until we see what happens with the man of steel.

  • Forest says:

    I imagine the main idea all comes down to who were your people and family. That has much to do with how your expressing yourself and what to go in the meantime.

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