Before Bane, Warner Bros wanted Leonardo DiCaprio as The Riddler in The Dark Knight Rises

A few weeks ago, Empire Magazine (via What Culture), published an interview they had with Chris Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises screenwriter David Goyer in which he revealed that Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Michael Caine, and Marion Cotillard weren’t the only cast members from Inception that Warner Brothers wanted in the most recent Batman Film.

According to the interview, Goyer stated that the Warner Bros. execs were very clear about who they wanted as the villain for the next installment.

“Obviously it’s gonna be The Riddler, and we want it to be Leonardo DiCaprio,” Goyer remembers them saying.

While clearly the demands of Warner Brothers didn’t pan out, it is interesting to note that the timing of all this is probably making this conversation between WB and Christopher Nolan right around the time Nolan was pitching Inception to them, which he had cast Leonardo DiCaprio. Its not clear how far all the Riddler talk went between them, but personally I think it would’ve made a pretty cool movie, and given how well Chris Nolan surprises everyone with amazing performances from unsuspecting actors (Heath Ledger as the Joker), if Nolan would’ve cast DiCaprio as the Riddler, it would’ve been amazing.