Nolan speaks of "profound sorrow" after Batman shooting

Batman director Christopher Nolan issued a statement yesterday in response to the multiple shooting in Denver, expressing "profound sorrow at the senseless tragedy." 

The statement, issued on behalf of the cast and crew, said: "Nothing any of us can say could ever adequately express our feelings for the innocent victims of this appalling crime, but our thoughts are with them and their families."

The attack began shortly after midnight at the multiplex in Aurora. Audience members said they thought it was part of the movie, or some kind of stunt associated with it. 

The film has several scenes of public mayhem — a hallmark of superhero movies. In one scene, Bane leads an attack on a stock exchange, and in another he leads a shooting and bombing rampage on a packed football stadium.

The star-studded Paris premiere of the third of Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy was cancelled yesterday. Hollywood actors Christian Bale, Anne Hathaway, Morgan Freeman and French actress Marion Cotillard had been due to give publicity interviews but they cancelled them after hearing news of the atrocity.

They had been due at the Champs Elysee last night for the film's French premiere. It would have followed the European premiere in London on Wednesday and the film's New York debut last week.

Warner Bros. saw its film take in a near record $30.6m (£19.6m) in midnight screenings, but ticket sales were overshadowed by the shooting. While the studio did not cancel any of the movie's planned screenings, it did stop promotions and some TV networks stopped running advertisements for the movie.