While the audience eagerly awaits more of his character incarnation, the batter actor Barry Keoghan says Heath Ledger’s Joker in The Dark Knight will always be the best. Created by Bill Finger, Bob Kane and Jerry Robinson, the Joker first made its debut in the 1940’s comics Batman Issue No. 1, which eventually made him the nemesis for the protector of Gotham for the more than 80 years that followed. Several actors have brought the Joker to life on screen, ranging from Cesar Romero’s campervan portrayal to Adam West’s Batman series after Jared Leto’s largely panned incarnation in David Ayer’s suicide squad.
One of the more acclaimed live-action versions of the Joker came with Heath Ledger’s appearance in The Dark Knight, in which the Clown Prince of Crime began his reign of terror on Gotham City, killing a judge, a police commissioner, and even Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Rachel. Ledger received both a posthumous Golden Globe and an Academy Award for his performance, becoming one of the most memorable for playing the character alongside Mark Hamill’s vocal work on Batman: the animated series. With Leto’s future as the character largely unknown, Warner Bros. joker movies and Barry Keoghan’s Joker in Matt Reeves’ the batterboth of which are separate from the DC Extended Universe.
While speaking with Collider to discuss his work in The Banshees of InisherinBarry Keoghan looked back on his time as The Joker for Matt Reeves’ the batter. When discussing his approach to playing the iconic villain, Keoghan said he didn’t look to a previous adaptation of the character to bring him to life, but did note that Heath Ledger’s Joker is still the best version of the DC movie. antagonist is on screen. . See what Keoghan said below:
It’s very intimidating [playing the Joker]. Heath Ledger was the best for me. So you have a lot of people to draw from and that. But again, you bring your version to it. That’s what I do with every character I play, except no one has seen my version of it. And again, to come back to it, I don’t want to be like so-and-so, and follow that method and that method. I want to do me. I want to bring my version because I think it’s new and unique in a way, that when you bring your version, nobody has seen it. And that can cause people to identify with it. So it was intimidating, but I was looking forward to it.
Why Heath Ledger’s Joker Performance Is Unbeatable
Nearly 15 years since it first appeared on screen, The Dark Knight not only ranks high on the list of the greatest comic book movies of all time, but is arguably the best portrayal of the Joker with Ledger’s performance. Unlike Romero and Jack Nicholson before him, Ledger brought the right amount of restraint into his portrayal to keep the character grounded, while also largely taking advantage of his chaotic nature, which was his hysterical laughter as he was beaten to a pulp by Christian Bale’s Batman during an interrogation and his tick from constantly licking his lips. To this day, Ledger is one of the few actors to take home an Oscar for a comic book film, while Phoenix later took home his own statue for his performance in Todd Phillips’ joker.
While he may not be holding a candle to… The Dark Knight‘s Heath Ledger not yet, the batterBarry Keoghan’s performance as the Joker has already been largely positively received by critics and audiences alike, with the Irish actor offering his own take on the character. Keoghan recently spoke about his possible return for The Batman 2, stating that he had yet to be contacted to come back, while Reeves had previously indicated that his inclusion in the first film was not inherently geared up for the sequel, while not completely ruling out his return. While the public awaits Keoghan’s possible return, they can both rewatch the batter and The Dark Knight streaming now on HBO Max.
Source: Collider
