The Dark Knight Rises Update: Christian Bale says it will be his last film as Batman

This is an unsurprising reaction from the man who defined the role these past few years.

In an interview conducted with Total Film, English performer and Batman actor Christian Bale says that "The Dark Knight Rises" will be the last film in which he will play Bruce Wayne and don the cape and cowl, unless director Christopher Nolan says otherwise. This is reminiscent of the commitment and promise Tobey Maguire made about his role in the Sam Raimi Spider-Man films, in which the young actor promised he wouldn't don the webs again unless the director was involved. In that light, I guess we'll be seeing Bale suit up and fight crime for the last time as Batman unless something causes Nolan to extend his Batfilms forward outside of his promised "Trilogy". For more on the scoop plus the interview itself, visit Slash Film and Total Film!

The Dark Knight Rises will be released on July 20, 2012.