"Call of Duty: Black Ops" will have at least two names in common with "Batman: The Dark Knight" when it slips into stores on November 9. Actor Gary Oldman,who will come back to the CoD franchise to voice-act as Viktor Reznov, and writer David Goyer have signed on to provide their services for the game, as has actor Ed Harris. Oldman will reprise his role from "CoD: World at War," while Harris will introduce his character, CIA operative Jason Hudson, and Goyer will provide script and plot consultation for Treyarch.
"Oldman, Harris and Goyer are considered some of Hollywood's finest talents and they perfectly complement 'Call of Duty: Black Ops'' ambitious and immersive single player experience," Treyarch studio head Mark Lamia said in a press release. "Their contributions have helped us to push the boundaries of our story telling and character development far beyond anything we have ever attempted before in the franchise."
Just in case you didn't catch the hints Treyarch has been trying to throw your way, "Black Ops" is probably going to go to some dark places. Just short of calling in Christopher Nolan to direct an intro and casting Christian Bale in the lead role, they've inched about as close to "The Dark Knight" as they can get.
Harris' portfolio of video game work isn't nearly as deep as Oldman's, but he's played a wide range of malevolent and everyman type characters in his movie work. It's not totally clear if his part will fall into one of those categories this time around, but we'll known by November.
What do you think of the casting choices in "Black Ops"? Are you glad to see Oldman returning? Share your perspectives in the comment section below.