Tom Hardy, he's not just going to go through the motions, he's going to try and craft a character that really makes sense for him."

He added: "He has really gone in through the roots of the character and approached the evil."

Nolan also praised Hardy for his dedication to becoming the masked villain.

"He learned how to do all of this fighting with Christian Bale, both of them wearing these crazy outfits where they could barely breathe," he said.

"In Tom's case, with this mask over his face, very tough to breathe, very hot, working in some very challenging environments.

"There was a lot of preparation that went into it, and it really shows on screen."

Nolan has previously praised Anne Hathaway, who plays Catwoman in the upcoming film, for her [uuid=d399b209-0b5c-486e-bec4-f1757320afc8]'incredible' performance[/uuid].

The Dark Knight Rises is released on 20 July.