Michael Caine may step into the formal wear of Alfred, the butler of Batman's alter ego Bruce Wayne, in the latest Batman movie.
The character of Alfred is responsible for the logistical operations of the Caped Crusader.
The Hollywood Reporter, which released the story, said Alfred was an integral part of the
Batman mythos.
If Caine accepts the role, he will join Christian Bale, who plays Wayne, the millionaire playboy by day who is the crime-fighting superhero by night.
Ringo keeping his eye on Santa
Santa Claus will be travelling to the beat of a different drum this Christmas - Ringo Starr's.
The former Beatle will be the honorary Santa tracker as the North American Air Defence Command follows his progress on Christmas Eve on a website and on a toll-free phone number for children in the United States.
The site will feature some of Ringo's Christmas music.
"Children will see amazing things. I'm privileged to be one of the Santa trackers," Ringo said.
NORAD, based at Peterson Air Force Base, is responsible for the air defence of North America. Tracking Santa has been a tradition at the command centre and its predecessor, the Continental Air Defence Command, for more than 45 years.
Meat Loaf improves
American rock singer Meat Loaf is recovering from heart surgery after collapsing on a London stage last week.
The star had surgery to treat Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome, a defect of the heart that causes an irregular heartbeat.
The 56-year-old, famed for his mega-hit album Bat Out Of Hell, was recovering after undergoing surgery last Friday.
The singer collapsed in the middle of a sold-out concert at London's Wembley Arena.
Film-makers sue over screeners
A coalition of independent film-makers has sued Hollywood's major movie studios seeking to overturn a controversial ban on sending out videos of films vying for prizes, saying that the move unfairly restricts their business, officials said.
The suit, filed in US District Court in Manhattan, seeks a temporary restraining order that would lift the so-called "screener ban" and US$25 million ($40 million) in compensatory damages and unspecified punitive damages, a spokeswoman for the coalition said.
The Motion Picture Association of America, which represents the studios, initiated the ban in September amid concern that videotapes and DVD of films vying for Oscars, which are known throughout the industry as "screeners", would be pirated.
- NZPA and agencies
Michael Caine may step into the formal wear of Alfred, the butler of Batman's alter ego Bruce Wayne, in the latest Batman movie.
The character of Alfred is responsible for the logistical operations of the Caped Crusader.
The Hollywood Reporter, which released the story, said Alfred was an integral part of the
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