How The Dark Knight 4 Could Still Happen Without Meeting Christian Bale’s 1 Condition To Return

The Dark Knight 4 may still be possible despite Christian Bale’s stringent condition to return to the lead DC role 12 years after The Dark Knight Rises brought an end to Christopher Nolan’s groundbreaking trilogy. This is especially so in the modern era of superhero movies, in which some of the genre’s earliest contributors have been returning in droves. This includes Michael Keaton and George Clooney, who were the fourth and sixth actors to portray Batman in live-action and who each returned to the role in 2023’s The Flash.

It remains unlikely that these actors would return for a full sequel to their last Batman movies. The fact that 2008’s The Dark Knight and 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises remain the two most successful Batman movies to date, however, makes a fourth installment of this franchise an especially tempting prospect. For his part, Christian Bale has stated that he would be willing to return – though it comes with a significant caveat that places a hefty roadblock in the way of its development.

Christian Bale’s The Dark Knight 4 Return Condition Explained

Christian Bale Needs 1 Person On Board

In an interview with Screen Rant in 2022, while promoting Thor: Love and Thunder, Christian Bale stipulated that he would only return to The Dark Knight movies if Christopher Nolan was involved. He clarified that returning to the franchise after a third installment was never initially on the cards, but that he could see himself returning nonetheless if Nolan still had a story to tell. His response is as follows:

I had a pact with Chris Nolan. We said, “Hey, look. Let’s make three films, if we’re lucky enough to get to do that. And then let’s walk away. Let’s not linger too long.” In my mind, it would be something if Chris Nolan ever said to himself, “You know what, I’ve got another story to tell.” And if he wished to tell that story with me, I’d be in.

After just two years, it is relatively safe to assume that Bale would stand by this statement. While the relatively poor reception to Thor: Love and Thunder may have caused Bale’s faith in superhero movies to err somewhat, Christopher Nolan was recently bestowed with the Academy Award for Best Director for 2023’s Oppenheimer, which also earned the award for Best Picture. Working with the acclaimed director at this juncture would therefore be a tempting prospect for any actor. Unfortunately, Nolan recently offered a more blunt response about returning to the genre.

The Dark Knight 4 Could Pass The Torch To A Different Nolan

Jonathan Nolan Worked On The Dark Knight And The Dark Knight Rises

In a 2023 interview with HugoDécrypte (via YouTube) promoting Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan was asked whether he would direct another superhero movie, to which the director simply said “No.” Nolan’s response seems particularly resolute and draws a line beneath a return to his Dark Knight franchise – the only movie franchise he has worked on – as well as new superhero movie projects in the DCU or MCU. Nevertheless, Nolan’s brother is not nearly as unyielding when it comes to the prospect of The Dark Knight 4.

Jonathan Nolan is a screenwriter and producer who has co-written several of Christopher Nolan’s most critically acclaimed movies. These include Memento, The Prestige, and Interstellar, even earning a Best Original Screenplay Academy Award nomination for the latter. More pertinently, Jonathan Nolan also co-wrote The Dark Knight and The Dark Knight Rises, recently sharing in an interview with Screen Rant that he would love to return to the franchise, stating:

Wouldn’t that be a dream? That period was about 10 years of my life, from when I got the call to work on Batman Begins in 2003 to putting out The Dark Knight Rises In 2012, and it was epic. The chance to work with Christian, Heath, Morgan Freeman, Michael Caine and the extraordinary cast of those films. A sort of American icon. So,
if I had the chance to go back and work on that again, absolutely
.

This admission came in May 2024, which is itself a positive sign. It also comes in the wake of an impressive career in television after Nolan created Person of Interest and Westworld in 2011 and 2016, respectively. He has also written and directed several episodes of both shows, while most recently directing three episodes of the incredibly well-received Fallout series on Amazon. Now that Jonathan Nolan boasts this wealth of experience, there’s little reason to suggest that he can’t take the reins with The Dark Knight 4.

Jonathan Nolan’s intimate knowledge of The Dark Knight trilogy as a writer already boosts his credentials to take over from his brother. His directorial work, meanwhile, suggests that he could easily step into his brother’s shoes and pick up where he left off now that Christopher Nolan has rebuffed the idea of returning as director. With that in mind, Christian Bale could be swayed by the idea, recognizing that while it may not be Christopher Nolan at the helm, the co-writer of the trilogy may indeed have another story worth telling.

What The Dark Knight 4 Could Be About With Jonathan Nolan As Director

Jonathan Nolan’s Preferred Villain Has Appeared Recently

Jonathan Nolan stated while on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that he initially hoped for The Dark Knight Rises to use the Riddler as its primary antagonist. As he was in charge of the screenplay rather than the story, the movie instead went with Tom Hardy’s Bane after Goyer and Nolan centered the villain around Batman instead of vice versa. Now that Matt Reeves’ The Batman debuted Paul Dano’s Riddler in 2022, The Dark Knight 4 would be a lot less likely to revisit this villain.

Still, it would be difficult for Nolan to revisit The Dark Knight trilogy after more than 12 years with an immediate sequel to the events of The Dark Knight Rises. If Nolan was successful in getting Christian Bale back on board, it isn’t as if the now-50-year-old actor would be too old to bring a certain physicality to the role (his action sequences as Gorr the God Butcher attest to this), but the jump in age would still be noticeable. Bale would instead be better placed continuing his role as a retired Bruce Wayne.

Furthermore, it is hard to ignore how The Dark Knight Rises left Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s Robin John Blake. The final sequences saw him set up as a successor to Bruce Wayne – particularly as his sidekick Robin – though it would be difficult to sell the now-43-year-old actor as a young sidekick to Batman. Instead, there is plenty of scope to explore Blake’s career as an experienced new Batman, with Bale’s Bruce Wayne in a more minor role.

Will The Dark Knight 4 Ever Actually Happen?

There Are Multiple Live-Action Batman Movies Coming

If The Dark Knight 4 was to be greenlit by DC Studios, it would certainly be a DC Elseworlds project. Unfortunately, DC is already in a position that may confuse audiences as Matt Reeves’ The Batman trilogy – another Elseworlds project – isn’t even past the halfway point, and may end up clashing with the new DC Universe’s version of Batman in The Brave and the Bold. Reintroducing another Batman – be it Bale’s or Gordon-Levitt’s – would certainly muddy the waters even more with DC’s live-action offerings, making it unlikely to happen.

The Batman is DC Studios’ fourth-highest-grossing Batman movie, with Batman v Superman interposed between it and The Dark Knight. Focusing on this trilogy, which is slated to continue in 2025, may therefore be more prudent for DC than reviving a decade-old franchise. Besides, whether Jonathan Nolan could even wrangle the same cast for a sequel is far from a foregone conclusion. Unfortunately, the current climate is not the best for a sequel to The Dark Knight Rises, no matter how tempting it may be for the franchise’s main contributors.

Upcoming DC Movie Releases

Sources: HugoDécrypte/YouTube & Happy Sad Confused/YouTube