Ralph Fiennes Aids the Dark Knight and Directs ‘The White Crow’

This year Ralph Fiennes, known for his superior acting, will lend his other talents to the film industry. He voices Bruce Wayne’s butler, Alfred, in the upcoming The Lego Batman Movie and is set to direct The White Crow.

After the breakout success of The Lego Movie in 2014, Will Arnett (Bruce Wayne/Batman) signed on for the stand-alone venture. Once that film was officially in the works, it was essential to find the right actors and actresses to voice the supporting cast of misfits, allies, and downright villains.

Fiennes is the perfect choice for the measured Alfred. It’s likely, given the material, he will have more than a few dry asides to offer on Batman’s antics, which no one can deliver like the charming, quick-witted Brit.

ComicBookMovie also reports other casting of interest to Harry Potter fans. Zoe Kravitz, the mysterious Leta Lestrange in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and its highly-anticipated sequel, lends her voice to Selina Kyle/Catwoman.

Also, in a humorous twist, Eddie Izzard is listed as the voice of Voldemort–an amusing irony since the infamous Dark Lord himself (that would be Fiennes) is already in the cast, and in a far more demure role by comparison. It will be interesting to see if they somehow cross paths and who gets the upper hand!

The film opens in both U.S. and UK theaters February 10th. For the UK-based fans, here’s a promo clip titled “Batman in London” to get you excited about the feature.

Then, after the excitement of aiding (or is it abetting?) the Dark Knight dies down, Fiennes will begin production on his new film, The White Crow, this summer. The film, written by David Hare, is based on Julie Kavanagh’s book “Rudolf Nureyev: The Life.” Nureyev was a star in the Russian ballet, torn between the culture and country he left behind and the new life of freedom he found elsewhere.

Variety gives the following description of the project:

“Ralph Fiennes will intimately capture the raw physicality and brilliance of Nureyev, while David Hare’s script delivers a tight and thrilling insight into his dangerous defection to the West in 1961 Paris, choreographed by the dancer’s great friend, 21-year-old Parisian Clara Saint…In a finale at Le Bourget airport in Paris, ‘The White Crow’ climaxes with that global event, reenacting a day that captivated and stunned the world over and proved to be one of the West’s greatest propaganda coups during the Cold War.”

For more details on The White Crow, read the full Variety article here. To view other promotional clips and high resolution stills of The Lego Batman Movie’s cast, click here.