UPDATED: Could Billy Crudup be The Riddler in Christopher Nolan’s BATMAN 3?

UPDATED: Could Billy Crudup be The Riddler in Christopher Nolan’s BATMAN 3?

UPDATED: The website Batman-News is saying the supposed SlashFilm article is a fake, breaks down how the screen shot is actually Photoshopped – read all about it here.  Looks like we’ll have to wait longer for a Riddler casting announcement… if The Riddler even ends up in the film.

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Now this is strange.  I get a tip from one of our readers that SlashFilm posted an article about WATCHMEN star Billy Crudup being cast as The Riddler, and the news was coming hot on the heels of this Tom Hardy casting news.  They send me the copy from the article and a link… but when I clicked on the link, there was nothing there.  Did SlashFilm post it and take it down?  Possible.  Did they post it but decided to hold it while checking facts?  Also possible.  I should note, I personally never saw this supposed post, so I in no way can verify whether it was ever actually on SlashFilm’s site – I am merely passing along info sent to me by a contributing reader, one who has sent me valid info before, and I have no reason to doubt. That said, I make no additional claims on this until I hear different. Here is the body of the article, as it was sent to me:

Hot on the heels of Deadline’s report of Tom Hardy landing an unnamed role in Batman 3, Slashfilm has learned through various sources that Billy Crudup will be starring in Nolan’s next film. Though it is unconfirmed, all sources are led to believe that he will be appearing as The Riddler. It has already been assumed for some time that the villain would be a major component of the next Batman flick.

This choice comes even further out of left field than Ledger as the Joker (as Heath had just been nominated for an Oscar). However, let’s sweep all skepticism aside because Christopher Nolan has once again made a fantastic choice. While Crudup has been reserved to small roles in bigger movies, he’s made quite a name for himself through his character work both in independent films and on stage. He has an uncanny ability to fully immerse himself in his characters and the Riddler would be a great chance to show his prowess to larger audiences.

Crudup has recently wrapped up work on The Convincer. He will next be assuming a lead role in Enchantress of Numbers before stepping into the third Batman film.

At this point I have no idea what to believe.  I guess we’ll keep watching the news wires to see if anything official comes out, but if it ends up being true, remember you heard it here first… or, uh, second.  I don’t know anymore.  Do you like the idea of Billy Crudup playing The Riddler?  Let us know in the comments below!

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UPDATE: A reader has sent us a screen shot of the original SlashFilm post, which you can see below.  So… hmm… what does this all mean?  So far SlashFilm has not commented on any of this, so we’ll see.

Click on image to see the full-size version

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About the Author

Born and raised in Dallas, Mark has been a movie critic since 1994, with reviews featured in print, radio and National TV. In 2001 he started the Entertainment section of the Herorealm website, where he contributed film reviews and celebrity interviews until 2004. After three years of service there, he started Bigfanboy.com, which has become one of the Dallas film community's leading information websites. Bigfanboy hosts several movie screenings in the Texas area, and works closely with film and TV studios and promotional partners to host exciting events and contests. The site also features a variety of rare celebrity and filmmaker interviews, and Bigfanboy.com regularly covers the film festival circuit as well. In addition to Hollywood reporting, Mark has worked for many years as an advertising and sci-fi/comic book artist. Clients have included Lucasfilm Ltd., Topps Trading Cards, The Dallas Mavericks and The Dallas Stars. From 2002 until 2015 he managed the Dallas Comic Con, Sci-Fi Expo and Fan Days events in the DFW area. He currently catalogs rare comic books and movie memorabilia for Heritage Auctions, and runs the Dallas Comic Show conventions, but remains an avid moviegoer and cinema buff.