Michael Jai WhiteIf you've got a few extra bucks lying around, you might want to consider sending a nice sympathy bouquet to burly rapper/actor David Banner. And if you're really swimming in the dough, you should also send a "New Beginnings Hydrangea Plant" to "Spawn" star Michael Jai White. Why? Because only one of the two are hanging out in Gotham City these days.

After last month's minor media sensation (which you may have read about here), here or perhaps here), MTV News once again has the exclusive on David Banner's quest to "smack Batman in the face." Long story short: He didn't get the part. Over the weekend we visited the Chicago set of "The Dark Knight," the currently-filming sequel to "Batman Begins"...and what we saw is looking really, really good. Keep checking back for more about that in the weeks to come, but while there we caught up with producers Emma Thomas and Chuck Roven, who confirmed that Banner's much-heralded audition hadn't landed him the role.

Instead, the role of "Gamble" has officially gone to Michael Jai White, the muscular martial artist/stuntman/actor best known for roles in such films as "Spawn" and "Exit Wounds." Thomas and Roven also cleared up fan confusion over who, exactly, the baddie is, explaining that Gamble is one of several mob bosses attempting to take over Gotham's streets now that Carmine Falcone (Tom Wilkinson in the first 'Batman' flick) is out of the picture. As "Dark Knight" opens, Batman and Jim Gordon must decide whether to focus their energy on aspiring thugs like Gamble, or the homicidal Joker (Heath Ledger), a costumed anarchist bank robber. Read More...

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First he battled Ra's Al Ghul and The Scarecrow, and then we saw him heading off to take down The Joker. Now, what kind of Gamble is coming the way of Batman?

MTV News has learned that rapper/actor David Banner auditioned this week for a role in "The Dark Knight," the super-secretive sequel to 2005's "Batman Begins." According to the beefy "Black Snake Moan" supporting actor, he would play a villain named "Gamble," another criminal to help fill out the rogue ranks alongside Heath Ledger's Joker.

Banner, a long-time comic book fan who named himself after the main character in the TV version of "The Incredible Hulk," could barely contain his excitement when we caught up with him in South Central Los Angeles on Wednesday. The star was in town to film a cameo for the music video to "International Players Anthem," a track by UGK featuring OutKast.

After several years of making his Hollywood aspirations known, the role of Gamble could mark a big step in Banner's career in front of the camera. The Southern-born "Play" star told us that he was so excited to read for the filmmakers, in fact, that he even shaved off his trademark beard to look more appropriate for the part.

While the news that he's being considered is a big one for Banner himself, the larger story must be the presence of this mysterious "Gamble" character. Various searches on the Internet, as well as a call to the beloved fellow geeks at L.A.'s Golden Apple Comics, yielded little more than the consensus that this Batman baddie has never appeared in a Dark Knight comic before.

Although eager, a hesitant Banner stressed that he couldn't divulge anything more about the character, and that he didn't know if he had landed the part just yet. But either way, David Banner seems one step closer to joining Ledger, Christian Bale, Aaron Eckhart and the other illustrated men of Gotham City.

Directed by Christopher Nolan, "The Dark Knight" is currently filming, and is targeting a July 2008 release.

UPDATE: Click here to watch the exclusive video interview with Banner

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