Batman: Arkham Knight Movie Cast, Part 1

"This is how it happened. This is how the batman died."

These are the iconic words that comprise the first and last lines of the script to the popular video game Batman: Arkham Knight. In said game, the words are spoken by Jonathan Banks (a memorable alum of Breaking Bad), portraying Commissioner Gordon, one of Batman's oldest friends. With all due respect to Mr. Banks's emotionally evocative performance in the game, he wouldn't be my first choice to cast as Gordon if in some bizarre, twisted, impossible alternate universe, there were ever a movie version of Batman: Arkham Knight (perhaps produced by, say, Warner Bros. at some point in the near future). That honor I would bestow on fellow Breaking Bad alum, Bryan Cranston. He's already done a damn fine job voicing Gordon in the Batman: Year One animated feature, which I think has earned him the right to give the role physicality as well. Plus I think he could nail the combination of righteousness and anger that makes the commissioner such an effective character.

Come to think of it, with all due respect to the way Rocksteady Studios chose to start their game, I would begin the movie version a bit differently. I love starting in medias res for a game, where you want the player-controlled action to start as soon as possible, but for a film version catered to people who haven't necessarily played all the games leading up to this one, it would be nice to expand the cold open to include some backstory - after those iconic first lines, of course. And the ones that follow:

Just put some gray in that hair and we're good to go.

COMMISSIONER GORDON (VO)
Nine months ago, Joker was cremated. I pressed the button and burnt the evil bastard myself. And then... we waited. Gotham braced itself for the inevitable power struggle. But it didn't come: crime actually fell.

It's at this point in the narrative that I'd like to include some of the content from the Gotham City Stories section that become available in the Batcomputer (read: pause menu plus) as you solve various visual riddles hidden throughout the game. The first story I'd like to include is one you get from scanning the Bat Signal entitled Fallout, which tells the story of how all the criminals who were once in Arkham City had to be released on a technicality. It would be accompanied by a line from Cranston's Jim Gordon something like this:

GORDON (VO)
Of course, there was the fallout of the Arkham City fiasco. Thousands of prisoners, all held illegally, and then nearly murdered by Hugo Strange. The inevitable class-action lawsuit had resulted in hundreds of "parole hearings" that only went one way. The prisoner got their freedom back, and we got a signed declaration that the offender promised to be on their best behavior from here on in.

In my film version, we'd see Edward Nigma, a.k.a. the Riddler, ideally played by the former Doctor David Tennant, representing himself in one such hearing, cross-examining Commissioner Gordon on the witness stand.

GORDON
Your honor, the man's insane!"\

JUDGE WESSEL
For the last time, Commissioner. We are not here to discuss the prisoner's state of mind!

 

RIDDLER
Come now, your honor. As slanderous as the commissioner's comments are, he's only expressing his frustration at the farcical nature of this so-called legal proceeding. Perhaps he doesn't understand that his presence is merely for appearance's sake. You are decorative, detective. (Nigma flashes Gordon a smug smile.) Now, given that our poor commissioner must endure several hundred more of these hearings, why don't you spare us the tedium of forcing him to reiterate the state's legally soiled case against me, and simply grant me the freedom to which I'm entitled?

GORDON
(rises to leave the room as the judge hammers his gavel and the parole board splutters indignantly)
Man's got a point...

GORDON (VO)
But even though the former Arkham City inmates were back on the street, things weren't necessarily easier for them...

As Jim Gordon is exiting the courthouse, he sees a bevy of badly injured street thugs, handcuffs fastened over the sleeves of ill-fitting bargain bin suits provided by their public defenders, awaiting the formalities that are their trials. He says something to someone to indicate that these are Batman's latest victims.

In this revised cold open, we also should here get introduced to a new and important character: BATMAN HIMSELF! But we'd see it through the eyes of his Faithful Servant Alfred as in the Gotham City story of the same name. I've just recently started to picture Anthony Hopkins as the Wayne family's butler - and not just because he once portrayed another famous Alfred, but because he could perfectly pull off a combination of stuffy English house servant and kindly mentor. (One caveat: he'd need the same moustache from Legends of the Fall.)

This pic is obviously from years ago, but
both Alfred and Sir Anthony have aged gracefully.

We'd see Alfred first because he would enter Bruce Wayne's room in Stately Wayne Manor one evening, holding a tray of "breakfast" - an egg white omelet, a pot of black coffee, and a stack of painkillers - only to notice that it's empty. Cut to Alfred taking the tray to the Batcave, where the back of Batman's caped yet unmasked head is silhouetted by the glow of the Batcomputer. On the screen are detailed schematics for a gigantic sleek black tank-like vehicle that can only be the Batmobile.

ALFRED
Sir, given that we have no pressing leads this evening and sundown is not for another forty-five minutes, I thought I might tempt you with what remains of your breakfast.

BATMAN
Forty-two minutes.

If you ignore the scarf,
it's pretty convincing, no?

When our hero says this line, the camera will dramatically swing around revealing... DANIEL DAY-LEWIS AS BATMAN! I've been personally fantasizing (strictly in terms of box office and critical acclaim) about what would happen if DDL put on the cape and cowl since before they cast Christian Bale in the role. I'm not the only one to envision this, but I could not be more of a proponent of this proposition. He's older than Batmans of the past, but this story should take place near the end of the Caped Crusader's career, and it can't just be a coincidence that he stands 6'2", the same height as Bruce Wayne in the comics.

ALFRED
Nevertheless, if you plan on continuing your relentless assault on Gotham's criminal element, you must have some nourishment.

Batman turns to scowl at Alfred, but he can't help his eyes from darting down at the delicious looking omelette. Or is he glancing at the painkillers? Either way, this is the only cue Alfred needs to swoop down to his master's desk with the tray and pour a steaming cup of coffee into an insulated thermos.

ALFRED
(as he pours)
Honestly sir, I don't understand why you feel compelled to press on with such intensity. Gotham has hardly been beset by a crime wave since the Joker's... unfortunate demise. Why not take the time to relax...?

BATMAN
For the last time, Alfred, I need to strike now, while the power vacuum remains in place. This isn't the time to rest.

ALFRED
(sure that his master is keeping something from him)
Very good, sir.

As Alfred leaves the room, a video call comes through on the Batcomputer. It's Lucius Fox, played in my movie version by Reg E. Cathey. I've been enjoying his sonorous voice since The Wire, and I was happy to see that he's got an important role in the new Fantastic Four movie (even though I'm almost certainly gonna skip the movie itself).

BATMAN
Lucius, did you get the proposed specifications for the new Batmobile I just sent over?

LUCIUS FOX
I did indeed, Mister Wayne. I see you've decided to add more guns.

BATMAN
Can you do it?

LUCIUS
It won't be easy. WayneTech has been out of the arms industry for a while. 

BATMAN
I'm sure you'll find a way.

LUCIUS
That's what you pay me for. Only I wish you would have made these modifications two years ago when I proposed beefing up your offensive capabilities. Why the sudden change of heart?

BATMAN
Just in case.

GORDON (VO)
So the city was cleaner than ever. My officers were able to do things no member of the Gotham Police Department ever thought possible, such as spending time with their families.

We see a uniformed cop standing with his wife and son on the observation deck of the Lady of Gotham, a dead ringer for the Statue of Liberty, but with different accessories. Across the water, the lights of Chinatown are strung with Halloween decorations. The cop holds his wife close and gives her a kiss on the cheek.

OFFICER OWENS
So much for Gotham being no place to raise a family, huh?

ELLEN OWENS
Come on, knock it off. Less than a year ago, I would still be right.

OWENS
I'm just glad you're not talking about moving back to Keystone. Cuz the only thing I hate more than Keystone...

ELLEN AND OWENS TOGETHER
...are my in-laws.

(Ellen jabs Owens in the ribs playfully as they both laugh at the joke they've heard a thousand times before.)

TYLER (their son)
Dad, are you gonna take me trick-or-treating tonight?

OWENS
Sorry kiddo, Daddy has to work the graveyard shift. But your mother will take you. Right, honey?

ELLEN
(jabs him in the ribs, smiling)
Whatever you say, Officer Owens.

GORDON (VO)
Deep down, I knew war was coming... I was just waiting for someone to pull the trigger.

The scene then shifts back to the regular cold open cinematic, with Officer Owens entering Pauli's Diner for his traditional pre-shift meal. Then all hell breaks loose, including an encounter with Demons, and Scarecrow's live broadcast warning of his plan to flood the city with fear toxin the next day. I would like to see John Noble, the same actor who voices Dr. Jonathan Crane in the video game, get a chance to play this in the movie, if for no other reason than I think he could add a lot to the character with less languid, more frantic and intimidating physicality than the video game version. Plus I'd like to give him another shot at doing an American accent that doesn't hit the R's so dirrrrectly.

He's even got the right look for the Dr. Jonathan Crane flashbacks!

We've got the inciting incident out of the way, but there are obviously more key characters to cast and key scenes to rewrite. I've already gone on long enough for now, so I'll save those for future posts. Until then, keep playing Arkham Knight until you've finished the story mode so you can read my super special blog recaps without being spoiled!