The Batman: Paul Dano Reportedly in Talks to Play Riddler

The Batman has been making headlines day after day this week with new casting news – or would-be casting news, in some cases. Things got rolling with the announcement that Zoe Kravitz is taking on the role of Catwoman / Selina Kyle, and just yesterday came the reveal that Jonah Hill was considered for Riddler and Seth Rogen eyed for Penguin in The Batman, before the studio passed on both actors. Now we may know who will be stepping up to take over the Riddler role from Hill, as Collider‘s Jeff Snieder is reporting that Paul Dano is being eyed to play Riddler in The Batman.

Here’s what Sneider revealed via his Twitter account:

Paul Dano is probably best known for his breakout roles in Little Miss Sunshine (2006) and There Will Be Blood (2007), especially the latter, in which he starred opposite Daniel Day Lewis’ Oscar-winning performance, playing a preacher of a small rural congregation, who gets into it with Lewis’ oil tycoon over an oil-rich section of land. In general, Dano has built his character acting career oscillating between roles that play up his boyish looks (see: The Girl Next Door) and roles that use those same looks as a mask to hide some deep darkness (see: Taking Lives). Dano recently explored the life of a criminal in the acclaimed Showtime miniseries Escape at Dannemora, which may have been what sold him to Warner Bros. and Matt Reeves as a suitable candidate for Riddler. Dano definitely has the look you’d expect of Edward Nigma, and will certainly be able to sail between the villain’s eccentric neurosis and psychotic malice. He’ll also look good opposite Robert Pattinson’s Batman, as both actors are of the same age (mid-30s).

So, it seems that Warner Bros. has a replacement for Jonah Hill as Riddler – but what about Penguin? As stated, Seth Rogen was in consideration until he wasn’t, and since that news broke, Seinfeld star Jason Alexander has started making noise on social media, campaigning to land the Penguin role himself. Rumor has it that Reeves’ The Batman will be based on the DC Comics story “The Long Halloween”, which would mean that these various Batman villain roles won’t be that big, necessarily – just enough to give some really talented character actors a strong cameo showcase.

Joker is now in theaters. Upcoming DC Movies include Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) on February 7, 2020, Wonder Woman 1984 on June 5, 2020, The Batman on June 25, 2021, The Suicide Squad on August 6, 2021, and Aquaman 2 on December 16, 2020.