With Comic-Con quickly approaching, news from a film that will not be represented at the convention may steal the show.  First Showing hears from a “reliable inside source” that Mr. Edward Nygma (a.k.a. The Riddler) is included in a casting grid for Christopher Nolan's third Batman film, which Warner Bros. is referring to as Batman 3 internally.  The report also claims that Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Inception) is listed as “interested" in the role.

It is important to stress that, at this time, the unconfirmed report should be considered a rumor.   That said, with Nolan's Inception currently holding top honors at the box office, any news regarding Batman 3 is exciting.  Hit the jump for why some aspects of the report's claims may be stronger than others.

Casting grids like the one currently hanging out at Warner Bros. are often used as a means of organizing a project's progress while keeping agencies in the know as to which roles are available for potential actors.  As such, the report itself is more indicative of The Riddler's inclusion in the film than Gordon-Levitt's.  Moreover, it is important to note that simply because an actor and studio may have mutual interest in a project does not mean it will come to fruition.

All of this is pure speculation at this point.  But given Nolan's track record of re-teaming with actors he has worked with in the past (will the great Michael Caine ever not appear in another Nolan flick?), I would have to think that Gordon-Levitt's work in Inception would put him in a solid position to appear if scheduling and the countless other elements that go into casting for a studio film fall into place.  Hopefully, more information on the film will be available sooner rather than later.  In the meantime, as mentioned, we should take this news as a solid indicator that The Riddler will indeed be at least one of the villains in Batman 3.  As for Gordon-Levitt's inclusion: consider my status "very interested."