- Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman: A wealthy socialite who as a child was traumatized by his parents' murder. Wayne secretly operates as the heroic vigilante Batman.[4]
- Michael Caine as Alfred Pennyworth: Wayne's father-figure, trusted butler, and confidant.[5][6]
- Heath Ledger as the Joker: A criminal mastermind and anarchist who is determined to sow chaos and corruption throughout Gotham.[4][7][8]
- Gary Oldman as James Gordon: One of the few honest officers in the Gotham City Police Department (GCPD) who assists Batman's war on crime.[7][9]
- Aaron Eckhart as Harvey Dent / Two-Face: Gotham's noble district attorney-turned-violent vigilante.[7][10][11]
- Maggie Gyllenhaal as Rachel Dawes: Gotham's assistant district attorney and Wayne's childhood friend, who is divided between her feelings for him and for Dent.[12]
- Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox: Wayne Enterprises' CEO who supplies technology and equipment for Batman's campaign.[13][14][15]
Additionally, Eric Roberts, Michael Jai White, and Ritchie Coster appear as crime bosses Sal Maroni, Gambol, and the Chechen, respectively; while Chin Han portrays Lau, a Chinese criminal banker.[d] The GCPD cast includes Colin McFarlane as commissioner Gillian B. Loeb, Keith Szarabajka and Ron Dean as detectives Stephens and Wuertz, Monique Gabriela Curnen as rookie detective Anna Ramirez[2][21][22] and Philip Bulcock as Murphy.[2]
The cast also features Joshua Harto as Wayne Enterprises employee Coleman Reese,[23] Anthony Michael Hall as news reporter Mike Engel,[24][25] Néstor Carbonell as mayor Anthony Garcia, William Fichtner as a bank manager, Nydia Rodriguez Terracina as Judge Surrillo,[2] Tom "Tiny" Lister Jr. as a prisoner, Beatrice Rosen as Wayne's Russian ballerina date, and David Dastmalchian as the Joker's paranoid schizophrenic henchman Thomas Schiff.[2][25][26] Melinda McGraw, Nathan Gamble, and Hannah Gunn portray Gordon's wife Barbara, his son James Jr., and his daughter, respectively.[2][27] The Dark Knight features several cameo appearances from Cillian Murphy, who reprises his role as Jonathan Crane / Scarecrow from Batman Begins;[28][29] musical performer Matt Skiba;[30] as well as United States Senator and Batman fan Patrick Leahy, who has appeared in or voiced characters in other Batman media.[31]
