The Dark Knight Rises

The wait is over, the first look at Chrisopher Nolan's long awaited follow up to The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, has finally made it's way online!

The Dark Knight Rises, based on the DC Comics character Batman, will be the third and final installment in Nolan's Batman film series. We already know the villans in the film include Anne Hathaway as Catwoman and Tom Hardy as Bane - but there is so much more we simply don't know.

The big question : will the story follow the comic-book arc of "Knightfall" which see's Bane literally break Batman's back leaving him a cripple?

Nolan has also revealed that as long as he is directing, Batman's famous sidekick Robin would not be appearing in the franchise because Christian Bale is still portraying a "young Batman", which meant "Robin's not for a few films". Nolan has also suggested that the Penguin would be a difficult character to portray on film, explaining, "There are certain characters that are easier to mesh with the more real take on Batman we're doing. The Penguin would be tricky".

Here is what Nolan has revealed about The Dark Knight Rises :

"Without getting into specifics, the key thing that makes the third film a great possibility for us is that we want to finish our story. And in viewing it as the finishing of a story rather than infinitely blowing up the balloon and expanding the story... I'm very excited about the end of the film, the conclusion, and what we've done with the characters. My brother has come up with some pretty exciting stuff".

He continues : "Unlike the comics, these things don't go on forever in film and viewing it as a story with an end is useful. Viewing it as an ending, that sets you very much on the right track about the appropriate conclusion and the essence of what tale we're telling. And it hearkens back to that priority of trying to find the reality in these fantastic stories".

Keep an eye out for the 33 second mark of the newest trailer, and you'll get a glimpse of Australian actor Ben Mendelsohn - carrying on the Batman / Aussie legacy of Heath Ledger!