Will 'The Dark Knight Rises' rise above the hype?

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The final chapter in Christopher Nolan's Batman series, may rise above expectations.

The Dark Knight Rises has monster hype at this point.

It continues to build on a daily basis, to the point where it could be the biggest movie ever made.

In this third film, we meet new characters Selina Kyle/Catwoman (Anne Hathaway), Bane (Tom Hardy), John Blake (Joseph-Gordon Levitt) and Miranda (Marion Cotillard).

Each character will be able to deliver a top-notch performance on the screen, but they will never reach what audiences received last year; a picture-perfect performance from Heath Ledger as the Joker.

If audiences go into The Dark Knight Rises believing anyone can top Ledger's memorable character, they will be extremely disappointed.

Take The Dark Knight Rises for what it is; an unbelievable action film from one of the greatest directors in the game.

"When I think of brilliance, I think of Christopher Nolan. He is a genius. These are very, very big words, but he earns them", said Hathaway.

Nolan is a man who knows how to tell a great story on a big scale.

He will be able to bring his A-game to the Batman series once again, and will make sure audiences leave happy.

"Every great story deserves a great ending and we've really tried to be true to that. The Dark Knight Rises is our attempt to give that great story, it's great ending", said Nolan.

There's no question that The Dark Knight Rises will be memorable, but will it be memorable at the box-office?

I'm predicting an opening weekend of $196.3 million.

This means it won't be the biggest movie opening of all-time, but it will be close behind.

I've compiled a list of the top 10 highest-grossing superhero movies of all time , to give you an idea of where I think The Dark Knight Rises will stack up.

The Dark Knight Rises is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some sensuality and language.

Runtime: 2 hours and 44 minutes.