Back in 2007, Warner Bros. hired director George Miller (Mad Max) to work on an adaptation of DC Comics’ Justice League, with Miller subsequently turning to a cast of up-and-coming actors to portray the legendary superhero team in what was planned as a big-budget motion-capture animation. Despite the studio pulling the plug on the project the following year, it’s now being rumoured that Warner Bros. could be turning to one of Miller’s original casting choices for the role of Batman, with MovieHole suggesting that Armie Hammer (The Social Network, Mirror Mirror) is under consideration to star as the Dark Knight in the studio’s proposed ensemble.
According to MovieHole’s report, The Lone Ranger star “is, at this stage, in with a very good shot to jump from a horse to a batmobile shortly after… but the Batman in this movie might only be used in Justice League so chances are someone else might get a shot at donning the charcoal duds in a solo movie.” Meanwhile, the site also goes on to claim that they’ve received confirmation that Joseph Gordon-Levitt won’t continue his Gotham City adventure post-The Dark Knight Rises, with the film’s conclusion simply “a nice moment for the movie to end on”, as opposed to a set-up for a future Robin-centred spin-off.
Hammer’s original casting back in 2007 certainly raised a few eyebrows – as did the appointment of the likes of D.J. Cotrona (G.I Joe: Retaliation) as Superman, Megan Gale (Stealth) as Wonder Woman, Adam Brody (The O.C.) as Barry Allen, Anton Yelchin (Star Trek) as The Flash and rapper Common (American Gangster) as John Stewart / Green Lantern. However, Hammer is certainly a much hotter commodity these days, and providing The Lone Ranger doesn’t follow in the footsteps of Disney’s John Carter, then it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to see the actor donning the tights as the Caped Crusader. Still, with a director yet to be appointed to Justice League, I’d chalk this one down to random speculation for the time being.
Originally published October 9, 2012. Updated November 6, 2019.
