There have also been many different portrayals of Catwoman in other forms of media. She has shown up in many animated shows, for example Batman: The Animated Series and The Batman, and in several video games, the most popular of which is Batman: Arkham City. In live-action media she was perhaps most famously portrayed by Julie Newmar in the 1966 Batman television show, and when the actress had other commitments, the character was portrayed by Eartha Kitt in later seasons of the show, and by Lee Meriwether in the 1966 Batman movie based on the television series. Decades later, the character was played by Michelle Pfeiffer in Tim Burton's Batman Returns. There was a standalone Catwoman movie with Halle Berry in the title role, but she was actually playing Patience Phillips rather than Selina Kyle, so that portrayal doesn't really count. I know many would disagree with me since there are many Catwoman comics without Batman, but I find the concept of a standalone Catwoman movie to be kind of uninteresting since, in my opinion, the most interesting part of the character is her complicated relationship with Batman. It's like if there was a Miss Moneypenny movie, and it didn't have James Bond in it.
As I stated in the previous blog entry, Anne Hathaway has been cast as Selina Kyle in Christopher Nolan's third and final Batman movie, The Dark Knight Rises. And like I said, I have no idea if I have any problem with that casting since I'm not that familiar with Hathaway as an actress. I guess I'll know if I like it or not when I see the movie. Perhaps we can pretend for the remainder of this blog entry that we're in the time period before she was cast in the movie, because there is a different actress that for quite a while now, I've thought might make a perfect Catwoman. That actress is Alison Brie.
She is an incredibly versatile actress, and I could see her as the perfect Selina Kyle. I can imagine her interacting with Bruce Wayne the way Selina Kyle should, and interacting with Batman the way that Catwoman should. People might think she is too young since she plays a younger woman in the television show Community, but I think she's perfectly capable of pulling off a more grown up look and personality. Here is a little picture I made of Catwoman from Batman: Hush with Brie's face pasted in instead. When I said I could see her as Selina Kyle, I wasn't even talking about her looks, but I think it looks pretty great in this picture. And seriously, no one could honestly tell me that Ms. Brie wouldn't look fantastic in a catsuit.
Speaking of which, in my opinion, her costume should be what I outlined in the previous post. Like I said there, Catwoman has had many different costume designs throughout all of the media she has been featured in, but certain elements seem tailor-made for a Nolan movie. Combat boots with sensible heels, a cowl with cat ears covering her hair, and the iconic goggles seen in the image I linked to above. I think the claws and whip typically included on different versions of Selina's costume are a bit gimmicky and unnecessary, and I wouldn't include them. When Selina is not wearing her Catwoman costume, maybe she could have dresses that are inspired by various other classic Catwoman costumes like this one or this one.
Regarding the approach to the character, Selina wouldn't be a villain, but just a criminal. Specifically a cat burglar. She would just steal stuff from rich people because she's addicted to the thrill of it, and loves the challenge. She wouldn't really be a danger to anyone, so she would just be more of a distraction for Batman from his more serious work. He would chase her because she's a criminal, and she would think of it as a game. At some point in the movie, she would end up helping out Batman, and they would develop feelings for each other. I don't know if this is the approach they're taking in The Dark Knight Rises, but it's the approach I think would be best.
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