Tom Hardy's performance as Bane in The Dark Knight Rises is based on the film's director, Christopher Nolan. Hardy's performance as Bane was received primarily with a shrug from fans of the trilogy. Most criticisms against the performance were leveled against the mask Bane wore. The mask garbled Bane's speech, making it difficult to understand the character. It also prevented viewers from seeing his face fully and the full range of Hardy's performance.
Nolan fans have joked in the past about similarities between the director and some of his characters. In particular, fans have said that Inception's Dom Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Tenet's Neil (Robert Pattinson) resemble the director. From the hair to the Britishness, fans have wondered if the resemblance was a deliberate choice on the actor's or director's part or a subconscious manifestation. In Bane's case, it seems to neither.
Nolan revealed on the Happy Sad Confused podcast that part of Hardy's inspiration for Bane was the director. Nolan says he's been teased about his character's "Nolan-esque" attributes in the past. He ultimately denies that he intentionally puts anything of himself in his characters. The director also expressed disbelief that Hardy based Bane on him, but elaborated on how that manifested in the character.
I’ve been teased about it in the past. Funnily enough I think there are, whether you’re looking at Kyle MacLachlan with David Lynch in Blue Velvet who does his collar up, I think there is a slightly mischievous tendency on the part of actors to see in the filmmakers where as a writer, particularly writer/directors, were able to put a bit of themselves into something and then build on that. Tom Hardy maintains that Bane is somehow based on me, but in Tom’s mind there’s some very complex interweaving of impulses and influences that somehow I have a voice in. I think it’s certainly not conscious on my part, I think Rob with Neil we talked about a lot of different influences on that character, none of which were me.
The Dark Knight Rises had a lot to live up to as the third entry in Nolan's acclaimed Dark Knight trilogy. The Dark Knight is one of the best comic book movies of all time, so the odds were always stacked against the director. While Bane is an interesting villain throughout the film, the mask he wears works against his favor. Audiences at the time complained about the inability to hear the actor speak, a problem that has persisted in Nolan's films. The mask also hides much of Hardy's face, making it nearly impossible to see any emotion register on his face, even if the character is written a bit flatly.
Also working against Bane is the fact that Nolan undermines the villain's arc with a third act twist. Bane is revealed to be the puppet of Marion Cotillard's Talia al Ghul, Ra's al Ghul's daughter. In addition to introducing villain-turned-ally Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway), the film was overstuffed with new characters and plot, leaving little time for fans to focus on one thing while watching The Dark Knight Rises. Nolan's tidbit reveals an interesting facet to Bane's character, though, one that will surely elicit a rewatch from some fans eager to catch any clues.
Source: Happy Sad Confused Podcast