Today in the esoteric reference points behind Christopher Nolan’s Batman villains (see: Did Tom Waits Inform Heath Ledger’s Joker Voice?) is a possible inspiration behind Tom Hardy’s Bane drawl.
Nominally, the actor insists the baroque vocoder lilt is borrowed from Bartley Gorman, Irish bare-knuckle boxer and self-described “King of the Gypsies”, but a Sherlockian Reddit user posits a more believable theory involving The Lion King. Specifically, dude sounds exactly like Rowan Atkinson voiced bird servant Zazu (in many ways the Alfred of The Lion King) when muffled by the buttocks of a rhinoceros. This is a 100% true story.
Skip to 3:23 to have your mind blown.
