The Dark Knight Rises Storyboards Map Out Three Key Scenes

It was a bittersweet year for Christopher Nolan. The director enjoyed a massive hit with The Dark Knight Rises, a sequel that earned largely positive reviews en route to a $1.08 billion worldwide haul. The film is generating awards buzz in more than a few categories. But it’s also the final chapter in Nolan’s Batman trilogy, so while the character likely will live on in Warner Bros.’ planned Justice League movie, Nolan bid Bruce Wayne and his costumed alter ego a fond farewell.

The movie’s out on DVD and Blu-ray now, giving fans the opportunity to pore over every little detail in Nolan’s final chapter. Allow us to contribute to the fun. ComicBookMovie has posted a slew of storyboards from key sequences in Nolan’s action-packed thriller. They map out the entire airplane sequence, showing how the director choreographed Bane’s (Tom Hardy) entrance into the movie, and his spectacular exit from a crashing plane. They map out Batman’s first appearance in the film, riding a motorcycle through a darkened tunnel as he attempts to capture Bane minutes after the stock-exchange robbery. And there’s plenty more. Here’s one layout. Click here for others:

The user, nailbiter111, doesn’t clarify where these storyboards were discovered. Here’s hoping that they’re actually Nolan’s, because they provide valuable insight into the structure of his large-scale action scenes, and the filmmaker can often be coy about revealing too much about his process. For instance, while Nolan does contribute to several featurettes on the Dark Knight Rises Blu-ray, there’s still no Director’s Commentary. There never will be. So fans have to cling to these reveals while we all sit back and wonder what Nolan has up his sleeve next.

Sean O'Connell
Managing Editor

Sean O’Connell is a journalist and CinemaBlend’s Managing Editor. Having been with the site since 2011, Sean interviewed myriad directors, actors and producers, and created ReelBlend, which he proudly cohosts with Jake Hamilton and Kevin McCarthy. And he's the author of RELEASE THE SNYDER CUT, the Spider-Man history book WITH GREAT POWER, and an upcoming book about Bruce Willis.