There's a chance Batman might become an American again.
The search continues for Christian Bale's successor as the Dark Knight to join Henry Cavill in Zack Snyder's sequel to Man of Steel. Several names are currently under consideration, but CosmicBookNews claims that 34-year-old actor Wes Bentley was recommended for the role by none other than Man of Steel executive producer Christopher Nolan.
Bentley certainly seems open to comic book roles, having played Blackheart in 2007's Ghost Rider and Adleman Lusk in 2010's Jonah Hex. In addition, he's appeared as Ricky Fitts in American Beauty, Seneca Crane in the first Hunger Games movie, and perhaps most importantly, is featured in Nolan's upcoming film Interstellar, which is presently filming.
Citing an unnamed DC Entertainment source, CosmicBookNews also reports that one of the spare Dark Knight trilogy Batsuits will probably be used for the screen testing, which should begin next month with an announcement expected somewhere between mid-September and early October.
Other potential Batmen include Jake Gyllenhaal, who reportedly was screenwriter David S. Goyer's pick for Batman Begins, Luke Evans and even Ben Affleck. Affleck's casting seems highly unlikely, however, considering he's slated to direct and star in Live by Night next year and will be appearing in Gone Girl after that, but CosmicBookNews claims Warner Bros. is "still asking."
The still-untitled sequel to Man of Steel goes into production next year for a scheduled 2015 release.