Tom Hardy admits he needs to beef up to play Bane in ‘Dark Knight Rises’
Christopher Nolan added “Inception” star Tom Hardy to join Christian Bale, Michael Caine and Morgan Freeman as the villain Bane in 2012’s “The Dark Knight Rises”.
Speaking on the UK’s Alan Carr: Chatty Man, Hardy said: ‘Chris Nolan, again, will revisit that territory entirely so I wouldn’t go by that.
‘Plus, that’s a lot of weight to put on and I’ve got to start shooting in May. So I’ve got to get back up to that [Bronson] size again and I’ve got to get up to about 13-and-1-half or 14 stone.
‘I’m 12 and a bit now, so I’ve got three months to do that.’
Bane is a merciless adversary for Batman in the character bringing incredible brawn and wit to challenge the Dark Knight. Bane becomes a test subject for a steroid-like strength enhancing chemical called Venom, which enabled Bane to break Batman’s back in the famous 1993 storyline.
Robert Swenson portrayed Bane in the film “Batman and Robin” (1997) but was a mindless drone, not the competent villain featuring in the comic book. Fans anticipate a more faithful adaptation from director Christopher Nolan.
The Dark Knight Rises will arrive in theaters on July 20, 2012
