12 years ago the trilogy ended Batman by Christopher Nolan. These three films, which have largely contributed to ennobling the superheroic genre in cinema, are now multi-rebroadcast classics and/or which make the success of the streaming platforms which broadcast them. However, 12 years later, the third episode, The Dark Knight Risesstill seems to be hiding a secret that obsesses some fans.
A more down to earth Batman
Each part of the trilogy Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan focuses on a villain from DC at a time. The main threat of Batman Begins is Cillian Murphy’s Scarecrow, the famous main antagonist of The Dark Knight is Heath Ledger’s Joker, and The Dark Knight Rises concludes the franchise with Bane, played by Tom Hardy, as Batman’s final foe. Each film also features a secondary enemy playing a key role in the story : Ra’s Al Ghul by Liam Neeson, Harvey Dent by Aaron Eckhart, and Talia Al Ghul by Marion Cotillard, respectively.
Although the universe Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan is more anchored in reality and therefore less populated with comic book characters and other fanciful cameos than other adaptations of Batman, the trilogy includes some well-known characters. For example, the “serial killer” Victor Zsasz made an appearance in Batman Begins and the Scarecrow plays a secondary role in The Dark Knight Rises. Fact, fans have also theorized about more cryptic indications that would hide other villains, like the Riddler in The Dark Knight, who might have been named Mr. Reese instead of E. Nygma. But in the genre, the most popular theory suggests that Deathstroke would be introduced to spectators during the opening sequence of The Dark Knight Rises.
Deathstroke vs. Bane
In the introductory scene, just before the impressive escape scene, Aidan Gillen plays the CIA agent who interrogates Bane and his henchmen aboard the plane. A few years after the release of The Dark Knight Rises, an ID card detailing the agent’s background began appearing on forums and social media. According to the picture, Aidan Gillen’s agent is called “William Joseph Wilson” and uses the alias “Slade”. According to this theory, this nickname would make him the incarnation of Slade Wilson aka Deathstroke from the trilogy Dark Knight. Deathstroke is a famous master assassin from the DC Comics universe who is part of Batman’s (and the Teen Titans’) long list of sworn enemies.
However, we must be frank, This theory is dubious to say the least. First of all, Aidan Gillen’s character is not named on screen. In fact, he simply introduces himself as “CIA”. VSis the novelization of The Dark Knight Rises who reveals his name as “Bill Wilson”. Beyond that, no additional official information about the character actually exists. We must face the facts that the image that identifies Aidan Gillen as Deathstroke is definitely a fake, certainly very elaborate, but a fake nonetheless. Especially since we know Nolan’s rigor in the development of his films; gold, an organization like the CIA has no reason to list an alias if the subject is not a suspect.
No Deathstroke but maybe other Batman enemies
Deathstroke is definitely not in The Dark Knight Risesbut the film includes references to other villains from the universe of Batman. First up, Ben Mendelsohn plays John Daggett, who shares his last name with Roland Daggett aka the terrible Clayface. Afterwards, Detective John Blake tells Bruce Wayne that when he told his superiors about Bane, they “asked me if he had seen any giant alligators” in the sewers, Pheasantt reference to the DC villain Killer Croc who is also present in the little-known official short films taken from Nolan’s universe and which we discussed in detail here. Finally, as a bonus, Gotham’s prison escapes involve the off-camera release of the Joker, which is mentioned in the novelization of The Dark Knight Rises.
And if you liked this article, you can also discover “Batman: 6 embarrassing moments we would like to forget”.
