The Brit List: Summer of London – Movies

4. Tom Hardy in The Dark Knight Rises

Tom Hardy in 'The Dark Knight Rises' (Photo: Warner Bros.)

Tom Hardy has the rare ability to project both searing intelligence and an earthy Brando-like masculinity, both of which will come in handy as he portrays Bane, the killing machine, in Christopher Nolan‘s third Batman film The Dark Knight Rises (in theaters July 20). “There is a very meticulous and calculated way about Bane,” Hardy told MTV.com. “There is a huge orchestration of organization to his ambition. He is also a physical threat to Batman. There is nothing vague about Bane. No joke. He’s a very clean, clear villain.”

The Dark Knight Rises is THE highlight of the summer blockbuster season, and the only movie this season that has a decent chance of competing with The Avengers‘ box-office record. And this production has British credentials out the proverbial wazoo: its director Christopher Nolan is a Brit, and star Christian Bale is a Welsh-born Englishman.

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