The Dark Knight : Christian Bale attends Dark Knight premiere in Barcelona!!

Christian Charles Philip Bale (also known professionally as Christian Morgan Bale; born 30 January 1974) is a Welsh-born English actor whose film credits include Empire of the Sun, The Prestige, American Psycho, Equilibrium, 3:10 To Yuma, The Machinist, Batman Begins, Captain Corelli's Mandolin, The Dark Knight and the upcoming film Terminator Salvation, where he will play the role of John Connor. Bale is known for his mastery of accents and harsh regimens of shedding and gaining weight (particularly for The Machinist, Batman Begins and, most recently, Rescue Dawn). Before he found success in playing Batman, he was heavily involved in independent films.

The Dark Knight : Christian Bale attends Dark Knight premiere in Barcelona!!

Bale, 34, appeared to put accusations of assault behind him as he spent half an hour signing autographs outside the city's Coliseum Threatre before entering the cinema.

The Welsh-born actor plays millionaire playboy Bruce Wayne and his violent alter-ego Batman in the sequel to Batman Begins directed by Christopher Nolan.

He was flanked by wife Sibi, and actress Maggie Gyllenhaal, who plays his love interest Rachel Dawes in the film, as he attended to fans, though he made no comment on the allegations or his subsequent arrest.

Director Nolan and actor Aaron Eckhart, who plays Harvey Dent, also spent time greeting fans and signing autographs.

Gernot Dudda, a representative for Warner Brothers, who produce the film, said: "We expected some excitement but have truly been taken aback by all the media attention."

Bale is expected to wrap up his promotional duties for the Dark Knight shortly, he is expected in Tokyo for the Japanese leg of the tour in the coming days, before returning to New Mexico to continue shooting the latest instalment in the Terminator franchise, where he plays John Connor.

Bale was arrested on Tuesday in connection with allegations of assault made by his mother and sister.

He spent several hours at a London police station before being released on police bail without charge - he has denied the allegations.

The Dark Knight, for which the late Heath Ledger is tipped to get a posthumous Oscar for his turn as the Joker, set a box-office record with $158.4 million in takings during its opening weekend in the USA last week.

The Dark Knight : Christian Bale attends Dark Knight premiere in Barcelona!!