User blog:Porterfield/Occupy Gotham?

Christopher Nolan's third Batman installment, The Dark Knight Rises, has been filming in Los Angeles recently, with previous shooting locations in Pittsburgh, England, Romania, and Jodhpur, India. The production's next stop, come October 29th, will be New York, a city that was long ago nicknamed after the home of Batman, Gotham City. New York City is currently in the headlines more than usual for the rapidly increasing Occupy Wall Street protests. Dark Knight Rises doesn't start shooting there for another 2 weeks, but if you've actually listened to what the 'occupants' have to say, it should be clear that they will still be there by the time Nolan and crew come to town. So the question is, will Nolan use the massive crowds to his advantage?

The massive crowds on hand in Lower Manhattan could certainly benefit production; a massive cast of extras is already embedded throughout the city. On one hand, you could say that the protestors might be opposed to participating. Warner Bros. is one of the mighty conglomerates against whom the movement stands, and the production budget is a whopping $250 million. On the other hand, Nolan was once a lowly independent filmmaker, and his last Batman film, The Dark Knight, had a strong focus on civil obedience and the balance between urban order and chaos. Plus, the casting call describes the setting of the film as "a city besieged by crime and corruption." Hmmm...

Apparently, cast members have been told that the shoot could include OWS protests, but if we know anything about Nolan, the protests would not be incorporated into the story, just the crowds. Then again, this could all be ridiculous speculation, as the protests might turn out to negatively affect the production by taking away space and resources. God forbid the release of the movie is pushed back just because some people want to exercise their rights to free speech! (Kidding of course)

Do you think The Dark Knight Rises will employ the masses of Occupy Wall Street? Yes No Who cares? I just wanna see the movie already!