Eddie Murphy as the Riddler? Hmm...

British tabloid The Sun reports that Eddie Murphy is a candidate to play the Riddler in Christopher Nolan’s follow-up to The Dark Knight (due in 2010). The rumor, now added to the one that has Johnny Depp in the role, is unconfirmed by everyone other than The Sun, which is not the most reliable source for movie news. Nevertheless, it’s fun to think about casting for Nolan’s next Batman movie. I think Murphy could pull it off — he’s certainly proven he can play outlandish characters. That said, I also worry that he would be too silly for the dark tale and be more of a distraction than an asset. Between him and Depp, I’d prefer to see the question mark on Depp, who’s proven he can play just about any character.

The Sun also floats the rumor that Rachael Weisz is playing Catwoman, which I much prefer to the rumor that has 62-year-old Cher in the role, though I am somewhat intrigued by the reports that Nolan is considering Angelina Jolie for the cat suit (though that may simply have grown out of a random suggestion posted on an LA Times blog last summer). Finally, the Sun has Shia LaBeouf as Robin, and while we’re at it, there’s also a rumor out there that Philip Seymour Hoffman may play the Penguin.

Thoughts on these rumors, PopWatchers? Who’s your dream Riddler? What about Robin and Catwoman? Do you even believe that these are in fact the characters being used in Nolan’s next installment?

• EW cover story: ‘The Dark Knight’: EW cover story: ‘The Dark Knight’
• Review: ‘The Dark Knight’: Review: ‘The Dark Knight’
• ‘The Dark Knight’ nabs biggest opening ever: ‘The Dark Knight’ nabs biggest opening ever
• ‘The Dark Knight’: Will you go out to see it again?: ‘The Dark Knight’: Will you go out to see it again?
• ‘The Dark Knight’: Oscar-worthy?: ‘The Dark Knight’: Oscar-worthy?

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addCredit(“Murphy: Charley Gallay/Getty Images; Riddler: ©DC Comics”)