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With a third Batman film in the Christopher Nolan series already confirmed, one of the biggest questions about the film is who the villain or villains of the next film would be. Since Heath Ledger passed away just months before the release of The Dark Knight, it would be safe to assume that we won’t be seeing the Joker in a future film. However, the DC universe does provide an entire rogues gallery of Batman villains that would work perfectly with the darker and more realistic approach that Nolan has taken with the Batman. Here is just a list of some of Batman’s villains that I think would do well in a future film. Not all have to appear in a film at the same time, but it would be nice to see one or a few of them make an appearance.

1. The Riddler- His love for puzzles and riddles is something that can easily be incorporated into a future Batman movie. And unlike the Joker who was mainly driven by a psychopathic desire to cause mayhem and chaos, the Riddler is a villain who is driven more by his egotistical needs to prove his superior intellect to the world, mainly by thwarting the Batman. Portraying him as a sort of cyber terrorist who leaves Gotham City with riddles via YouTube is just one possible way of incorporating the Riddler.

2. Deadshot- Often cited as the second greatest assassin in the DC universe behind Deathstroke, Deadshot is a character who oftentimes brags about being an assassin who “never misses”. The events of The Dark Knight have made it pretty obvious that the Batman will be hunted down by the authorities in the next film, and with Deadshot usually portrayed as a gun for hire, it would be pretty interesting to see the Gotham police department hire him to take down the Caped Crusader.

3. The Penguin- Often referred to as a gentleman of crime and a mobster, a really good possibility for Penguin in a future Batman film would be for him to take over the Gotham mob scene which was pretty much left in shambles after the events of the previous film.

4. Mr. Zsasz- Victor Zsasz was shown briefly in Batman Begins, with his last appearance on screen being him escaping from Arkham. And since the film suggests that he is still at large, there are many possibilities for Nolan to use this homicidal maniac who keeps a tally of all his kills on his body as a side villain in the next film.

5. Catwoman- It is often debated whether or not Catwoman is a full-fledged villain or simply just an anti-heroine. But one thing that can’t be debated is that Catwoman has been shown to have an interest in the Batman in the comics. And since Rachel was blown away in The Dark Knight, having the Catwoman in as a possible love interest for the Batman might make for a good side story.

There are other villains that would do well in a future film such as Hugo Strange or the Calendar Man, but these are the five that really stand out in my mind as being  good possibilities.

- J.R