Rumor: Juno Temple playing Harley Quinn in The Dark Knight Rises

Grist for the rumor mill, but one which may actually pan out. While Christopher Nolan managed to keep information on The Dark Knight Rises mostly under wraps, we've pretty much got everybody pegged for the characters they'll be playing. We don't know what their arc will be exactly, and hopefully that stuff will remain hidden until we see the actual movie. But there's a cloud surrounding the character played by Juno Temple(Kaboom), described simply as a "street smart Gotham girl". Even by Nolan standards that's pretty damn vague. There has to be something else to it.

Jeff Sneider over at Variety tweeted recently something that may confirm some previous guesses as to the character's true identity..

"100% RUMOR, no confirmation: Overheard at lunch in Beverly Hills - JUNO TEMPLE may be playing HARLEY QUINN in THE DARK KNIGHT RISES"

Ever since she was first announced as part of the cast, speculation has run high that she could play either Harley Quinn, a female version of Robin, or even Batgirl. I still believe one of these theories will pan out. Part of the reason is that Temple is too good of a talent to waste on some throwaway character. Her stock has exploded over the last few months, making her presence in the comic book film a major plus.

Also, if you follow Christopher Nolan's trajectory of the three films, it has a lot to do with legacies and the influence(for good or ill) of father figures. Batman's father played a role in shaping who he turned out to be. The same with The Joker, and now it appears there may be a facet of that playing out with Ra's Al Ghul. Harley Quinn is a character who looks up to The Joker in that same way. She's been completely transformed by him into a dangerous, insane replica, and her presence would be quite a thorn in Batman's side.