hollie ottman: 'Dark Knight Rises' Cast Grows By Two

Brett Cullen and Chris Ellis have signed on for roles in the next installment of the Christopher Nolan-directed 'Batman' franchise.
By Eric Ditzian

Brett Cullen
Photo: Getty Images

The population of Gotham City continues to grow, as "The Dark Knight Rises" has added two more actors to its swelling ranks.

Brett Cullen ("Lost") and Chris Ellis ("Catch Me If You Can") have signed on to director Christopher Nolan's third "Batman" film, Variety reports. Cullen is set to play a judge and Ellis will portray a priest. The two men join Matthew Modine, Tom Conti and Joey King, whose castings were announced on Friday.

Cullen is perhaps best known for his small but integral role in "Lost" as Goodwin, a member of the Others. More recently, he played Dakota Fanning's father in "The Runaways" and will be seen in this summer's "Monte Carlo," as well as the forthcoming "Red Dawn." Ellis portrayed a special agent opposite Tom Hanks in "Catch Me If You Can" and took on a short arc on Fox's "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles." Both men also appeared in Ron Howard's "Apollo 13."

These newcomers join Christian Bale, who again plays the lead roles of Bruce Wayne and Batman, plus Michael Caine as Wayne's butler and confidant, Alfred; Gary Oldman as Police Commissioner Gordon; and Morgan Freeman as Wayne's right-hand man, Lucius Fox. Other new faces in the cast include Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle (who becomes Catwoman in comic-book lore), Marion Cotillard as Miranda Tate, Joseph Gordon-Levitt as John Blake and Tom Hardy as Bane. We got our first look at Bane — his freaky head mask, his hulking frame — on Friday, when Warner Bros. kicked off a viral marketing campaign that led to the discovery of a photo of the villain.

"The Dark Knight Rises" is set for release on July 20, 2012.

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