It looks like Ra's al Ghul is immortal after all.

Well, not quite. While the brilliant supervillain enjoys eternal life via his occasional baths in the Lazarus Pit in the "Batman" comics and animated series, the Ra's al Ghul of Christopher Nolan's Gotham City is stuck in a more realistic world. So when Liam Neeson crashed the train at the end of "Batman Begins," there's a good chance that was the last we'd be seeing of Ra's al Ghul.

Unless, of course, we go back in time...

Heat Vision brings word that Josh Pence has signed on to play a young Ra's in "The Dark Knight Rises," appearing in a flashback sequence that takes place 30 years before the present Bat-story.

The presence of Ra's, whether he be young or old, only helps fuel the rumor that his beautiful and dangerous daughter, Talia al Ghul, will be making an appearance in the film (it is speculated that Marion Cotillard, who starred in Nolan's "Inception," will be playing this role).

However, as usual, on this we can only speculate, as details on the plot of "The Dark Knight Rises" are under security of Batcave proportions. We will just have to wait... and wait...

Josh Pence (who looks a bit like a young Liam Neeson, no?) is the unsung cast member of "The Social Network," performing with Armie Hammer as the Winklevoss Twins before his face was digitally replaced. Josh also recently wrapped "Battleship" and "The Algerian."

"The Dark Knight Rises" opens July 20, 2012.