Since The Dark Knight Rises ends on such an optimistic note for Bruce Wayne, you can’t blame fans for thinking that it was really just Alfred’s dream. However, Christian Bale - the actor who played Bruce and Batman - likes to think that the ending isn’t a dream.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly to help promote Exodus: Gods and Kings, Bale said that his personal interpretation of the ending was that Bruce had finally broken away from the need to be Batman. Alfred (Michael Caine) really did see Bruce with Selina (Anne Hathaway) in Italy and Alfred was happy to see that Bruce moved on.

Alfred “was delighted that finally [Bruce] had freed himself from the privilege, but ultimately, the burden of being Bruce Wayne,” Bale said.

The Dark Knight Rises was released back in 2012 and closed Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy.

As for Bale, he can be seen as Moses in Ridley Scott’s Exodus: Gods and Kings this weekend. The film is expected to open at the top of the box office this weekend, despite some mixed reviews.

image courtesy of Zak Hussein/INFphoto.com