Warner Bros. and Christopher Nolan have placed a call out to fill two female lead roles for the third installment of the Batman franchise. Meanwhile Deadline reports that the roles are for a love interest and a villain — which automatically makes Catwoman, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn possible candidates.

Several actresses are currently front running the search. They include: Rachel Weisz (The Lovely Bones), Naomi Watts (King Kong), Blake Lively (Green Lantern), Natalie Portman (Thor), Anne Hathaway (Alice in Wonderland) and Keira Knightley (Pirates of the Caribbean).

It’s interesting to note that Portman and Lively are both currently starring in their own upcoming superhero-movie franchises.

There’s been a lot of rumor and Internet angst about wanting Catwoman to appear in this third film, but I’m not sure how I’d feel if she was just the principal villain. It seems counterproductive to cast two female leads when one could do it all to please and silence the comic book geek mass. Of course, Nolan is a genius in his own cryptic way so who am I to complain or criticize.

“The Dark Knight Rises,” is set for a July 20, 2012 summer release. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.

Source: Deadline