The Batman 2 Role Has Sebastian Stan On Edge

Right, so Sebastian Stan—you know, the chap who spent years running about as the Winter Soldier in the Marvel universe—has now landed himself deep in Gotham. He’s officially taking on Harvey Dent (yes, that Harvey Dent) for Matt Reeves' much-anticipated sequel, The Batman 2.

Stan Jumps Ship to DC

Stan broke the news himself while chatting at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. The bloke's headed straight into the heart of London, where The Batman 2 is gearing up to start shooting this summer. It’s a bit of a jump from Marvel, but going by Stan’s own words, he's brought a fair bit of excitement—and a very healthy dose of nerves—along for the ride.

And he wasn’t shy about it:
'I’m excited, I’m nervous, and trying to keep surprising myself.' Fair play to him, really. Gets boring otherwise, doesn’t it?

Double Trouble: Stan on Playing Dent

Here’s where it gets properly interesting. Stan didn’t just say he’s playing Harvey Dent—he let slip he’s got to handle 'many roles in this one'. Not multiple characters exactly, but Dent’s two sides. Fans of the comics already know what’s coming: Dent starts out as Gotham’s hard-nosed District Attorney, the sort who really wants to scrub the place clean. But in proper tragic Batman style, it all goes pear-shaped when gangster Sal ‘Boss’ Maroni throws acid in his face. The result? That infamous split personality—half-decent DA, half total maniac—otherwise known as Two-Face.

Behind the Scenes with Make-up Magic

Stan also chatted a bit about the transformation itself. Turns out, he’s already spent time with the hair and make-up teams figuring out just how gruesome (and cinematic) that scarring will look. He reckons that working out those nitty-gritty details is actually part of keeping the job challenging—and keeping himself creatively sharp.

Stan’s Career: From Winter Soldier to Dent

• Stan’s no stranger to big franchises—years as Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier with Marvel
• Recently unrecognisable with a shaved head in Cristian Mungiu’s Palme d’Or winner Fjord (plugging it at Cannes, naturally)
• Pulled a Best Actor Oscar nod for playing a young Donald Trump in The Apprentice (yes, really—that’s a thing that happened)
• Keeps flipping between massive studio flicks and smaller indie, issue-based films; bloke likes a challenge

Production Kicks Off This Summer

All signs point to The Batman 2 kicking off production in London in the next few months. No word yet on how full-on ‘rogue’s gallery’ this one’s going to get, but with Stan in the mix as Dent/Two-Face, you can bet there’ll be some serious psychological fireworks.

Watch this space—Stan’s Harvey Dent might just be the next big thing to shake up Reeves' dark, moody Gotham.