We all know that Nolan’s Batman movies have been great. Many people doubted that Heath Ledger would be a good Joker, but now we look back on his performance as the definitive version of Batman’s ultimate nemesis. Is it fair then to doubt Nolan can pull the same trick and suprise us all? We’ll need to wait and see, but whoever should be able to channel the demure shyness and the raw sexually that Michelle Pfeifer brought to the role in her seminal performance in Batman Returns. A mature actress with emotional range is key for this role in my opinion so here’s 5 actresses who could fill the role better than the jumbo-mouthed Hathaway.
5. Charlize Theron
She’s the right age to play a slightly more mature, but still gorgeous version of Selina Kyle. In movies like Monster Charlize has also played roles where her look has been transformed completely. Her metamorphosis from submissive office worker to vicious vigilante could see her look and demenour change completely. With movies like Aeon Flux, Charlize also has the athletic figure and action movie chops to pull off this role. She’s the girls who saves Brandon Flower’s by fighting ninjas for crying out loud!
4. Kate Beckinsale
While she made her name in British indie flicks, it was her performance in the schlocky Underworld movies that brough Kate Beckinsale to Hollywood prominence. She’s undeniably gorgeous and she’s proved she can pull of the tight fighting costume and brooding super heroine action scenes. Ugly-ing her up for playing Catwoman’s alter ego will require more than a pair of thick glasses though. (*Another star from Underworld, Mass Effect 2 and Chuck, Yvonne Strahovski, wouldn’t be a bad pick either!*)
(* Update: some kind soul informed me that wasn’t Yvonne but Sophia Myles in Underworld. Man, those two sure do look alike!*)
3. Rachel McAdams
Other than her role in Wes Craven’s underrated thriller Red Eye, McAdams has had few roles with action scenes. In that particular movie she was fantastic though, combining vulnerability with grit and determination she was even better than the reliable Cillian Murphy who played the antagonist of the piece. Recent roles as a bitchy go-getter in Morning Glory shows she has the sass for the role, but playing Catwoman would push her to exhibit sexiness and danger in way she hasn’t done in her career so far. I would love to see how she could handle such a challenge.
2. Kate Winslett
Where has Kate Winslett gone? She may have come to super-stardom through her wishy-washy performance in Titanic, but it was her off kilter role in Michel Gondry’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind that showed what a versatile actress she was. The most far-out suggestion on this list, Winslett would need to train hard for this role and it would be a big ask to expect her to take on a role so different from anything she has ever done. A little older than some on this list, Winslett still looks great and would surely relish a chance to change her public image and play a bad girl for once.
1. Noomi Rapace
In her performance as the eponymous Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, Rapace was vulnerable, strong and in one particular leg-crossing scene absolutely terrifying to men. She’s a great actress who’s absolutely mesmerising in the film adapations of Stieg Larsson’s detective novels and commands every scene she’s in. During emotionally draining scenes in the first movie we feel her pain, then see her brutal retribution. She is also the stronger character in these stories, the more determined and more vengeful of the two protagonists. She may be less of a polished beauty than others on this list, but none of them can match her convincing performance through such realistic, compulsive and unflinching scenes.
So that’s my list. Maybe Hathaway will be good in the role, I hope she is. For now though, I’m going to dream of how much better some of these ladies would be in this important role and that iconic costume. Prove me wrong Nolan, prove me wrong!