From Moviefone: Two new rumors surfaced this weekend regarding the casting of two (potentially) major roles in Warner Bros. / DC Comics' next bids for superhero-box-office dollars. As is always the case with long-lead rumors like this, either tidbit could be completely false or wind up being a mammoth spoiler, so keep that in mind as you read.

The first rumor concerns the casting of a major female role in the Zack Snyder–directed 'Man of Steel,' and it comes to us by way of Latino Review. Their "most trusted reliable source" tells them a few things: A) Contrary to rumors that surfaced last week, Lois Lane will absolutely be in the film, and B) the big baddie this time around is actually going to be a villainess from Krypton named URSA. It is this role for which Alice Eve, Diane Kruger and Rosamund Pike are being considered.

So, who is URSA? As you'll recall from the first two 'Superman' movies, she's one of the three Kryptonians banished to the Phantom Zone by Supes' father, Jor-El. In the past she's always played a distant second fiddle to General Zod, but considering Snyder has said he doesn't plan on the latter being in the film, that hopefully means fans will finally see a shake-up as far as on-screen Man of Steel villains go. As for Batman, his rumor requires an even larger grain of salt than normal.

According to Michigan TV station WILX, 'The Dark Knight Rises' crew members have been scouting out a few filming locations in the Northern state and that said locations are "being considered as a hideout for Batman sidekick Robin." This is particularly interesting given that director Christopher Nolan has said in the past that he has zero interest in giving Batman a sidekick, but keep in mind that 'Spider-Man 3' director Sam Raimi repeatedly said he wasn't going to use Venom in his third entry, and we all know how that turned out.

AICN makes an amusing side observation about the WILX report. Merrick mentions that this could simply be a case of the news outlet misunderstanding what they were told. TDKR may indeed be scouting for "Robin's hideout," they just may have been referring to Robin Williams, a fan favorite to play Batman baddie Hugo Strange (pictured, right). It's a stretch, no doubt, but surely such a coincidence is only going to light a fire under Strange's fanbase.

Whatever the case may be, with Comic-Con still ages away (or so it seems), we likely have round after round of fresh rumors ahead of us. So, again, take these reports with a grain of salt until the next juicy bit of speculation arrives to either confirm or completely deny everything you've already read about the next Superman and Batman films.

From Moviefone.

Original post by Peter Hall.

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