Gossip: Christian Bale Bails On Batman

It looks like Christian Bale is ready to hang up his cape and cowl.  The current big screen Batman says the next film in the superhero franchise may be his last.  Bale told the “Philippine Daily Inquirer” he recently wrapped shooting on “The Dark Knight Rises” with director Christopher Nolan, the last time he says he’ll be donning the Batman hood on screen.  He says, “Everything’s finished.  It’s me and Chris – that will be the end of that Batman era.”  Bale has played the Caped Crusader in all three of Nolan’s Batman films starting with 2005’s “Batman Begins” and including 2008’s “The Dark Knight.”  The third film, “The Dark Knight Rises,” is due out next July.

Bale won an Oscar earlier this year for his supporting role in “The Fighter.”  He will be seen next in the China-set period drama “The Flowers of War.”