Batman 3 gets a release date

That's right folks, Batman 3 is on the way - despite having no official title, script, plot details, production schedule or any of the usual shenanigans that normally happen before the release of a film, Warner Brothers - the studio behind the bat - has announced a summer 2012 release for the follow up to The Dark Knigh t.

Christopher Nolan is again at the bridge, calling the shots for Christian Bale's Bruce Wayne. Whether other cast members will return (aside from obvious impossibilities) is yet to be confirmed, as is practically every detail of the superhero sequel.

The Brothers Warner have certainly sat the bat amongst a heavy bevy of summer tentpoles, with The Avengers, Battleship, Star Trek 2 , and the Spider-Man re-jig all scheduled for the surrounding weeks - and it smacks of almighty confidence in Nolan and co that they'll have a completed product ready for launch.

The highly anticipated sequel follows on the heels of 2008's mega-blockbuster The Dark Knight , a film so successful it will make any attempt to follow it all the more difficult, let alone a film with a deadline of just over 2 years away.

With post production still wrapping on Nolan's latest, Inception , the director certainly has his work cut out for him. Let's hope it has no detrimental effect on the quality of Batman 3 - though if anyone can deliver, it's Nolan.