On January 5, 2006, Brody confirmed speculation that he was interested in playing the role of The Joker in 2008's "The Dark Knight". However, Christopher Nolan and Warner Bros. decided instead to cast Heath Ledger in the role. He was also in talks with Paramount to play Spock in J. J. Abrams "Star Trek XI", but it ultimately went to Zachary Quinto. In 2009, he starred in "Splice", a science-fiction film written and directed by Vincenzo Natali. Originally a Sundance film, "Splice" was adopted by Dark Castle Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros. In 2010, he played the star role of Royce in "Predators" (a sequel to the original "Predator"), directed by Nimród Antal and produced by Robert Rodriguez.