Dark Knight sequel details revealed - bat-nipples ahoy?

Contains spoilers...

According to an insider source at Cinema Blend, the third instalment in the Christian Bale Batman reboot will feature Two Face more extensively than originally planned, due to reluctance to recast the role of The Joker, played in this Summer's The Dark Knight by the late Heath Ledger.

After the tragic and accidental death of Ledger in January, Batman's most notorious adversary will not feature at all in Batman 3 (or is that Batman 7?).

Instead the third of Nolan's Batman films will apparently be based on the Batman graphic novels 'The Long Halloween" and "Dark Victory". Though The Long Halloween involves the Joker, it seems to be Two Face's presence in it which will dominate the the derived film.

Additionally, Robin is introduced in Dark Victory, and if the Boy Wonder turns up in Nolan's third caped crusader outing, it'll be the second time he's shown up for the third episode (the first occasion being in Joel Schumacher's Batman Forever in 1995).

This can only bring back post-traumatic stress and memories of Bat-Nipples for those of us who sat through Schumacher's take on the gothic superhero, culminating in the apocalyptically awful Batman And Robin (1997). So, fingers crossed, folks...

The Cinema Blend article speculates that Dark Knight director Christopher Nolan will return to helm the third outing, but this remains unconfirmed at the moment.

Cinema Blend

Also see:

The Dark Knight: here come the nipples (11th November 2007)
Sneak Preview of The Dark Knight (IMAX) (7th December 2007 - spoilers)
Five new posters for The Dark Knight (29th April 2008)
The death of Heath Ledger (22nd January 2008)
New Dark Knight poster distinctly post-9/11 (24th April 2008)
Controversial Heath Ledger scene to be cut from The Dark Knight? (11th April 08 - spoilers)
The Dark Knight gets its US rating (2nd May 2008)