Cinewebradio interviewed Graham Nolan (no relation to director Christopher Nolan), the co-creator of Bane. Nolan collaborates often with Chuck Dixon, Bane’s other co-creator. Nolan was asked about Bane’s spike in popularity since being chosen as the main villain of The Dark Knight Rises, and what he thought about what he’s seen so far. Here are some excerpts from the interview (translated to English from French), courtesy of Comic Book Movie:

Could you tell us about the creation of this character?

Bane was created to be the ultimate villain capable of bringing down The Batman. He had to be intelligent, powerful and brutal. Chuck and I discussed many aspects of the character before I set pencil to paper and designed him.

Did you know that Bane would have such an impact in Batman Legacy?

We knew he would be important in to the Knightfall storyline, but had no idea he would reach the popularity of today.

2012 will be Bane’s year, as Christopher Nolan has decided that he would be the new villain of the next movie (The Dark Knight Rises). You may have seen the first pictures and trailers… What do you think of Bane’s look?

I like what I see so far. I understand the need to change certain things for a movie. The Batman costume of film is not that of the comics either. It’s more important to get the character right.

(If you have seen the prologue of The Dark Knight Rises) What do you think of Tom Hardy’s voice as Bane ? (It seems that a lot of people have had difficulties to understand him!)

Yes, it is a bit difficult, but I am not going to judge the film by a pre-release clip. There is plenty of time to tweak the sound and enhance the clarity if the director decides it’s necessary.

Have you been called by DC Comics or Christopher Nolan’s team to work on the character with them ?

No.

What do you think of Christopher Nolan’s first two Batman movies?

I am one of the few that liked the first one (Batman Begins) better than the second.