Joker (The Dark Knight)

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Joker
The Dark KnightTrilogy character
HeathJoker.png
Heath Ledger as the Joker
First appearance The Dark Knight (2008)
Last appearanceThe Dark Knight (2008)
Based on
Joker
by
Adapted by
Portrayed by Heath Ledger
In-universe information
Occupation Criminal mastermind
Terrorist
Anarchist
Assassin
Home Gotham City

The Joker is a character portrayed by Heath Ledger and the main antagonist in Christopher Nolan's 2008 superhero film The Dark Knight . Based on the DC Comics supervillain of the same name, he is depicted as a psychopathic criminal mastermind with a warped, sadistic sense of humor who defines himself by his conflict with the vigilante Batman. In the film, the Joker tests how far Batman will go to save Gotham City from descending into chaos by targeting the Caped Crusader's allies, including police lieutenant James Gordon and district attorney Harvey Dent.

Contents

Ledger's portrayal of the Joker as an avatar of anarchy and chaos was specifically influenced by the graphic novels Batman: The Killing Joke and Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth . He wears the character's traditional purple and green color palette, while his disfigured clown-like appearance is the result of smeared makeup that covers facial scars of a Glasgow smile, rather than bleached white skin from falling into a tank of chemical waste like in the source material. Paintings by Francis Bacon, the character of Alex in Anthony Burgess' novel A Clockwork Orange and Stanley Kubrick's film adaptation of the same name, and various punk rock musicians served as additional inspirations for Ledger's performance.

Although Ledger's casting as the Joker was initially controversial, it is now widely considered to be his finest performance; Ledger himself regarded it as his most enjoyable. When the film was released in July 2008, six months after Ledger died from an accidental prescription drug overdose, his performance as the Joker received widespread acclaim and earned numerous posthumous accolades, including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Ledger's Joker is often listed as one of the greatest and most iconic villains in film and popular culture and has become one of the most notable media adaptations of the character.

Concept and development

Casting

I feel like this is an opportunity for me to not take myself too seriously, and for some reason, I just gravitated towards [The Joker] and I knew I had something to give to him. And I just instantly had an idea of how to do it.

—Heath Ledger on why he preferred playing the super-villain. [1]

On 31 July 2006, The Dark Knight was officially announced by Warner Bros. Pictures and Heath Ledger was cast as the Joker. [2] Director Christopher Nolan had met with Ledger over the years for different roles, including the part of Batman in Batman Begins . Ledger explained that he was not interested in working on superhero films; "I would just feel stupid and silly. I couldn't pull it off and there are other people who can perfectly, but I just couldn't take myself seriously". [3] [4] [1] [5] After seeing and being impressed with Batman Begins, however, Ledger sought the part of the Joker in its sequel. [4] Nolan cast Ledger before there was a script due to his determination, stating; "Heath was just ready to do it, he was ready to do something that big." [6] [3] [7] Casting director John Papsidera stated that they needed somebody courageous to play the part. [8] Joaquin Phoenix, who later portrayed the Joker in the eponymous 2019 film, was offered the role by Nolan, but he turned it down as he "wasn’t ready then." [9]

As a starting actor, Ledger did not attach himself seriously to the roles he was playing. This changed, however, when at age 22 he started to watch some of his films. Realizing that they were movies he himself might not actually have wanted to see, it made him more cautious and respectful towards his professional choices. [10] The 2005 fantasy film The Brothers Grimm marked a turning point for the actor as director Terry Gilliam gave Ledger (and his co-star, Matt Damon) opportunities to create characters they had not been given before. [11] Gilliam helped Ledger put on a clown act for that film, an experience the actor later acknowledged as an influence for his performance as the Joker. [10]

Performance

"Everything about what he does from every gesture, every little facial tic, everything he's doing with his voice—it all speaks to the heart of this character. It all speaks to this idea of a character who's devoted to a concept of pure anarchy and chaos. It's hard to get a handle on how those elements combine. The physicality reminds me of the great silent comedians. It has a bit of [Buster] Keaton and [Charlie] Chaplin about it."

—Christopher Nolan on Ledger's performance. [12]

Highlighting the opportunity for freshness, Ledger aimed for a new and different interpretation of the character, separate from previous film incarnations. [7] Ledger and Christopher Nolan both explained seeing eye-to-eye on the Joker's appearance in the film, sharing common reference points for who the character was going to be. [7] Based on philosophical ideas of anarchy and chaos, they looked at art by Francis Bacon for visual reference and they talked about Malcolm McDowell's performance as Alex in Stanley Kubrick's film A Clockwork Orange , and who Alex is in Anthony Burgess' novel of the same name. [3] Ledger was given Alan Moore's graphic novel Batman: The Killing Joke for preparation for the role, as well as Grant Morrison's graphic novel Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth , which he "really tried to read and put it down". [13] The vocal style Ledger used is rumored to be influenced by Tom Waits. [14] In an interview with MTV, Ledger said he regarded the experience playing the Joker as the most fun he ever had, "and probably will ever have". [15]

Steve Alexander, Ledger's agent, said the actor had a "pay-or-play" deal on The Dark Knight, "so he felt free to do whatever he wanted to do as the Joker, no matter how crazy." According to The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus cinematographer Nicola Pecorini, Ledger had talked with him about Johnny Depp's off-kilter portrayal of Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl in relation to The Dark Knight, aiming to make a performance that would be "so far out he'd be fired". [16] As Ledger was cast early in pre-production, Nolan explained that the actor had "months and months" to prepare for the role. [17]

Execution

"Inside. He's laughing red and black and red and black till there's nothing left to laugh. Until, almost tenderly, he turns inside out through his mouth."

 – Scrawlings from Heath Ledger's Joker diary [18]

During a span of six weeks, Heath Ledger secluded himself in a hotel room, compiling a character diary and experimenting with voices. "It's a combination of reading all the comic books I could that were relevant to the script and then just closing my eyes and meditating on it," he said about his process. [19] The diary contains photos, news clippings, various handwritten thoughts and words, and portions of dialogue from the film. Christopher Hooton, writing for The Independent, said that the 'Joker journal' had several stills from Stanley Kubrick's film A Clockwork Orange , joker cards, photos of hyenas, unhinged clown makeup and the word "chaos" highlighted in green. Furthermore, it contains a list of things the Joker would find funny, such as AIDS, landmines, and geniuses suffering brain damage. [18] It was revealed that Ledger had read Grant Morrison's The Clown at Midnight (Batman #663) and based the list upon the Batman writer's prose. [20]

Ledger highlighted the importance of finding an iconic voice and laugh for the character, relating the voice as "the key to the demented killer". [21] Nolan explained Ledger's early and "peculiar" ambition for the voice of the character, saying that the actor had studied the way ventriloquist dummies talk. The filmmaker also acknowledged that the voice performance was based on the Alexander technique. [22]

Ledger developed the Joker's voice and mannerisms slowly over time and during camera tests. "Don't act, just read it", Nolan had told Ledger for a test screening. In hair and makeup tests, Ledger would start exploring the movements of the character. While test recording without sound, he shared his take on the Joker's voice and physicality, and "in that way he sort of sneaked upon it". [17]

The actor developed the physical appearance of the character, being "very involved" with the painting of his face, says prosthetic supervisor Conor O'Sullivan. [7] O'Sullivan acknowledged how Ledger, Nolan, and makeup artist John Caglione all gravitated towards a Francis Bacon painting Nolan was referring to. Ledger also got to choose the Joker's weapon among different rubber knives, and he worked closely with costume designer Lindy Hemming on deciding the look for the character.

Nolan noted, "We gave a Francis Bacon spin to [his face]. This corruption, this decay in the texture of the look itself. It's grubby. You can almost imagine what he smells like." [23] Costume designer Lindy Hemming picked inspiration for the "chaotic" look from such countercultural pop culture artists as Iggy Pop, Johnny Rotten, and Sid Vicious. [7] [24] She gave the image for the Joker of someone who is "very sweaty" and who "probably doesn't have a proper home". She tried to present a backstory for the character "that he really doesn't look after himself". [7]

Application of Ledger's makeup was done with the actor scrunching special facial expressions. Caglione called the application work "a dance". This technique created facial textures for white paint. As Ledger closed his eyes tight, Caglione put on the black makeup. Then, water was sprayed over the eyes and the actor would squeeze his eyes and shake his head to create imperfections in the makeup. [25]

To get in character for filming, Ledger kept his Joker diary with him on set and frequently referred to it. Between takes, Ledger would stay in costume and makeup just being himself. The actor would fool around, skateboarding while in his Joker costume on set, and smoking cigarettes. John Caglione described Ledger as helping others around to relax, never letting "the intense nature of the roles overwhelm him". [26]

The first sequence shot was the film's IMAX opening, the "prologue". As the Joker wears a mask through the scene with minimal dialogue, Nolan set the prologue first in the schedule because he wanted to put off performance worries, allowing Ledger to enjoy that relief. [17]

The interrogation scene between Batman and the Joker was the first scene shot with Ledger really showing the full performance altogether. [17] The director and his leading actors all liked the idea of shooting the key scene early on. During rehearsals, the actors kept things loose and improvisational, saving for the actual shoot. Bale confirmed that Ledger did not perform the Joker's voice during rehearsals, waiting to get in character when the cameras rolled. [27] Nolan later acknowledged the scene to be his favorite in the film, saying "I had never seen anybody sell a punch the way Heath was able to do with Christian." [28]

Ledger was allowed to shoot and direct the threat videos the Joker sends out as warnings. Each take Ledger made was different from the last. Nolan was impressed enough with the first video shoot that he chose to not be present when Ledger shot the video with a kidnapped reporter (Anthony Michael Hall). [29]

Ledger always showed up early on set. The first thing he would do, according to Caglione, was to give bear hugs to cast and crew members around the set. "And no matter how banged-up or bruised Heath was after a long day, after we'd take off the last drop of makeup, he'd just hug everybody in the trailer before he left". [30] At the end of shooting, on his Joker diary's final page, Ledger wrote "BYE BYE". [31]

Effects of Heath Ledger's death

On 22 January 2008, after he had completed filming The Dark Knight, Ledger died, aged 28, of an accidental prescription drug overdose, leading to intense press attention and memorial tributes. "It was tremendously emotional, right when he passed, having to go back in and look at him every day [during editing]", Nolan recalled. "But the truth is, I feel very lucky to have something productive to do, to have a performance that he was very, very proud of, and that he had entrusted to me to finish". [32] All of Ledger's scenes appear as he completed them in the filming; in editing the film, Nolan added no digital effects to alter Ledger's actual performance posthumously. [33] Nolan has dedicated the film in part to Ledger's memory. [34] [35]

Ledger's death affected the marketing campaign for The Dark Knight [36] and also both the production and marketing of Terry Gilliam's film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus ; both Nolan and Gilliam celebrated and paid tribute to Ledger's work in these films. [32] [36] [37] [38] During production of The Dark Knight, Jai White's Gambol was meant to survive his confrontation with Ledger's Joker, which would have resulted in the Joker giving Gambol a Glasgow smile of his own and enabling the filmmakers to reuse Gambol in the future, [39] with Jai White commenting that Gambol was supposed to have a bigger role in further sequels, returning to Gotham City and trying to take it over. [40] Following Ledger's passing, despite the film's script not calling for Gambol's death, Nolan cut out several of Gambol's planned scenes and the editors had Gambol killed off by the Joker during their confrontation, something Jai White didn't find out until seeing the film during its premiere. [39]

Writer David S. Goyer's original intent for the Batman Begins sequels in 2005 involved the Joker being apprehended by Batman with the aid of Commissioner Gordon and Harvey Dent in the second film and the Joker scarring Dent during his trial in the third film. [41] However, most aspects of Goyer's film treatments were absorbed into The Dark Knight. [42] According to Ledger's sister Kate, Ledger was planning to reprise his role as the Joker for another film, [43] a notion supported by Aaron Eckhart, who recalled that Ledger had planned to return in a sequel. [44] Nolan ultimately decided that the Joker would not return in The Dark Knight Rises and dispelled rumors that he would use unused footage from The Dark Knight to bring Ledger back. [45]

Characterization

Ledger described the Joker as a "psychopathic, mass murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy". [46] He embodies themes of chaos, anarchy and obsession, expressing a desire to upset Gotham's social order through crime and his conflict with Batman. After their first fight, Batman struggles to understand exactly what the Joker's motivations are. However, Alfred suggests he may not have motivations typical of criminals, or may have no real motivation at all, commenting, "Some men just want to watch the world burn."

The Joker's hair is stringy, unkept, and dyed green. His face is covered by a cracked, smeared and runny layer of white clown makeup, while his sunken eyes are thickly rimmed in black and his teeth are yellowed. [47] A red grin is sloppily painted across his mouth and cheeks, covering the facial scars of a Glasgow smile. [27] Wearing the character's traditional color palette from the comics, the Joker is dressed in a light purple shirt with a thin medium-toned purple tie and a green waistcoat, topped by a dark purple overcoat; he also wears purple pants and leather gloves, the former marked with pinstripes. The film reveals that his clothing is custom-made, with no labels. The patterns and designs chosen were popular during the Victorian and Edwardian periods; however, they are given an eccentric twist with the purple and green color palette. The Joker's shoes have an upward swoop at the toe, reminiscent of clown shoes. [27]

Joker carries no identification of any kind and offers no clear details about his true name or background. For instance, Joker offers a variety of often self-contradictory accounts of how he got his scars: simultaneously claiming he inflicted them upon himself to console his wife (who was similarly scarred over a dispute with a loan shark), and that they were inflicted upon him by his father during a domestic dispute. When he is arrested by the Gotham City police, they find only knives and lint in his pockets. He speaks with a hint of an Australian accent (which was Ledger's natural intonation) that further obscure his origins, suggesting that he may not even be a United States citizen.

The character's mannerisms carry a quality of unpredictability. His voice frequently shifts in pitch, so that he speaks his dialogue hitting higher notes, followed by an immediate lower voice capable of landing two octaves below. Nolan acknowledges this unpredictability to be part of the character's slinky physical movements as well, saying that Ledger's performance "[is] always a surprise". [17] About the Joker's physical appearance, Geoff Boucher wrote for the Los Angeles Times that the character probes the facial scars with his tongue and "walks with shoulders bowed and his chin out and down, like a hyena". [48]

Character biography

At the end of Batman Begins , newly promoted Lieutenant James Gordon (Gary Oldman) tells Batman (Christian Bale) about a criminal who leaves behind joker playing cards at crime scenes.

In the opening scene of The Dark Knight , the Joker assembles a gang of masked criminals to rob a mafia-controlled bank and tricks them into killing one another, leaving him to escape with the money as the only survivor.

The Joker interrupts a meeting between mob bosses Sal Maroni (Eric Roberts), Gambol (Michael Jai White) and the Chechen (Ritchie Coster), who are discussing a plan to hide their money from the police. He warns them that Batman will go after their accountant Lau (Ng Chin Han) in Hong Kong and then offers to kill Batman for half of their fortune. Gambol, angry at the Joker's robbery and disrespect, refuses and puts out a contract on the Joker's life, prompting the Joker to kill him and take over his gang. When Batman captures Lau, whose testimony threatens the crime families, Maroni and the Chechen take the Joker's offer. The Joker kills a Batman impersonator and states that killings will continue until Batman reveals his identity. He makes good on his word and targets public figures involved in the mob trial, killing judge Janet Surillo (Nydia Rodriguez Terracina) and police commissioner Gillian B. Loeb (Colin McFarlane), although Gordon saves Mayor Anthony Garcia (Néstor Carbonell). The Joker also targets district attorney Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) at a fundraising dinner and throws his girlfriend Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal) out of a window, but Batman rescues her.

When Dent claims he is Batman to use himself as bait, the Joker attacks the police convoy transporting him and is apprehended by Batman and Gordon. Under Batman's interrogation, the Joker says he finds Batman entertaining and has no intention of killing him, though concedes that he was initially fooled into believing Batman was Dent due to "the way [Batman] threw [himself] after her". Having deduced Batman's feelings for Rachel, the Joker reveals she and Dent were taken by corrupt officers to two different buildings after the police chase, and that they are rigged to explode. Batman races to save Rachel while Gordon goes after Dent, but they discover the Joker has switched their locations, knowing that it would psychologically torment them. Rachel is killed in the explosion, while Dent is severely burned. The Joker escapes custody with Lau, forces him to give up the location of the mob's money, and sets it on fire, burning Lau alive. He then takes over the Chechen's gang, leaving the latter to be killed by his own dogs.

To prevent Wayne Enterprises accountant Coleman Reese (Joshua Harto) from exposing Batman's identity on live television, the Joker threatens to blow up a hospital unless Reese is killed. While the police are diverted evacuating hospitals and protecting Reese, the Joker meets with a disillusioned Dent, shifting the blame for Rachel's death off of himself and persuading him to take personal revenge on those he deems responsible. As panic grips the city, the Joker rigs two evacuation ferries, one with civilian passengers and the other with prisoners, with explosives, threatening to blow them both up unless one group sacrifices the other by midnight. To the Joker's disbelief, the passengers refuse to kill one another. He also disguises his men as hostages from a hospital and forces the real hostages to stand over them while wearing clown masks and holding guns taped to their hands, in an attempt to trick the police into killing them. Batman figures out the deception, saves the hostages, and subdues the Joker, who feels he and Batman are meant to fight each other forever and boasts that his plan to corrupt Dent has succeeded as he waits for the police to apprehend him. Although Batman later saved Gordon's family from Dent, who had fallen to his death, both the Caped Crusader and Gordon knew that the Joker won by corrupting Dent, which would make the city lose faith, and to prevent this Batman decides to take blame for Dent's murders to preserve the fallen knight's legacy, foiling Joker's plan.

The Joker is not mentioned in The Dark Knight Rises as Nolan felt it was "inappropriate" to acknowledge "a real-life tragedy" in referencing Ledger's death. [49] However, the film novelization by Greg Cox makes reference to the character while describing Blackgate Prison:

Now that the Dent Act had made it all but impossible to cop an insanity plea, it had replaced Arkham Asylum as the preferred location for imprisoning both convicted and suspected felons. The worst of the worst were sent here, except for the Joker, who, rumor had it, was locked away as Arkham's sole remaining inmate. Or perhaps he had escaped. Nobody was really sure. Not even Selina. [50] [51]

Reception

Announcement and early response

The casting decision surprised some [52] and was seen as a controversial move at the time, [53] receiving notable negative reactions on the Internet. [54] [55] Nolan remembered the cynicism he endured surrounding Ledger's casting, saying that "the whole world turned around and said 'What are you doing?' You know, Heath Ledger, Joker, didn't make any sense to people at all." [3] In his 2016 book The Caped Crusade: Batman and the Rise of Nerd Culture, NPR contributor Glen Weldon recalled that fans were outraged over the choice of Ledger, due to his past roles in films such as Brokeback Mountain (2005). [56]

However, with the first trailer released in 2007, the film and its portrayal of the Joker received very positive response from audiences and entertainment industry professionals alike. Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro gushed of his impression for Ledger's performance, finding it "really, really edgy and scary". American Batman writers Paul Dini and Jeph Loeb both chimed with the positive reactions. Loeb, who had been critical of Jack Nicholson's portrayal of the Joker in 1989's Batman , expressed his excitement for Ledger's interpretation, saying the casting felt "just about right. I eagerly anticipate more!" [57]

Critical reception

"Heath Ledger is magnificent. The Joker, incarnated with chilling authority by the actor, is simply one of the most twisted and mesmerizing creeps in movie history."

—Richard Corliss, Time [58]

Heath Ledger's portrayal of the Joker received universal acclaim, winning numerous posthumous awards for his performance, including the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, [59] a Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor in a Motion Picture, [60] the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, [61] the Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actor, [62] a Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role, [63] and a Best Actor International Award at the 2008 Australian Film Institute Awards. [64]

"I can only speak superlatives of Ledger, who is mad-crazy-brilliant as the Joker", wrote Peter Travers of Rolling Stone , stating that the film is deeper than its predecessor, with a "deft" script that refuses to scrutinize the Joker with popular psychology. [65] Travers praised the cast, saying each brings his or her "'A' game" to the film. [65] Travers said Ledger moves the Joker away from Jack Nicholson's interpretation into darker territory, and expressed his support for any potential campaign to have Ledger nominated for an Academy Award. [65] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times stated that Heath Ledger's portrayal is a "key performance" and pondered whether he would become the first posthumous Academy Award-winning actor since Peter Finch in 1976. [66]

Mark Dinning from Empire magazine called Ledger's performance "monumental" and wrote "The Dark Knight is Ledger's movie. It is a towering performance. ... A force of nature". [67] Kevin Smith commented on Ledger, calling his "incredible" performance among "the most frightening, smart and well-played villains ever. Ever." [68] Mark Lee, writing for The Daily Telegraph , commented that Ledger accomplished "a genuinely unsettling, brilliant nuanced portrait of evil". Tim Teeman commented for The Times that "Ledger is so terrifying and unpredictable that his very presence on screen makes you nervous." Total Film reviewed that Ledger is "burning brightly as he embodies an icon. ... This is the definitive Joker", calling the performance "a masterpiece". For The Hollywood Reporter , Kirk Honeycutt called Ledger's performance "a beauty". [69] Entertainment Weekly put the film on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list, saying, "Every great hero needs a great villain. And in 2008, Christian Bale's Batman found his in Heath Ledger's demented dervish, the Joker." [70] Emanuel Levy wrote Ledger "throws himself completely" into the role. [71] David Denby of The New Yorker , otherwise critical of the film, praised Ledger's "sinister and frightening" performance, which he says is the film's one element of success. Denby called Ledger "mesmerising" and said, "His performance is a heroic, unsettling final act: this young actor looked into the abyss." [72] "It's just one of the most iconic movie performances of modern times", declared chief film critic of Variety Scott Foundas. [8] In 2009, Total Film issued its "The 150 Greatest Performances of All Time" list, ranking Ledgers' performance in The Dark Knight at 105th place. [73]

Film critics, co-stars Maggie Gyllenhaal and Michael Caine, and many of Ledger's colleagues in the film community joined Bale in calling for and predicting a nomination for the 2008 Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in recognition of Ledger's performance in The Dark Knight, which he would go on to receive and win. [74] In 2022, Clayton Davis of Variety ranked Ledger's portrayal as the Joker the best superhero movie performance in the past 50 years. [75]

Influence on other villains

Bérénice Marlohe cited Ledger's performance as the Joker as an inspiration for her portrayal of Sévérine in the James Bond film Skyfall , specifically in regards to Sévérine's psychological instability, which Marlohe added to her performance in a subtle way, as the script didn't make the Bond girl's "craziness" obvious. [76] Seth Gabel was pitched to play Count Vertigo in Arrow as a character inspired by Ledger's Joker, which he felt incredibly intimidating for him initially, so to avoid being redundant, Gabel tried to find his own version of the level of freedon Ledger's Joker had, an intimate relationship to violence and psychosis of his own. [77] Iwan Rheon admitted to have used Ledger's Joker as a reference for his performance as Ramsay Bolton in Game of Thrones . [78] In regards to Jesse Eisenberg's performance as Lex Luthor in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU) film Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice , Ben Affleck compared Eisenberg's Luthor to Ledger's Joker, feeling that Luthor was the best character in the film due to being grounded to reality and that Eisenberg improved all of his scenes to the point of creating a "whole psychology" for Luthor instead of portraying him as a "one-dimensional" villain. [79] On playing N'Jadaka / Erik "Killmonger" Stevens in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) film Black Panther , Michael B. Jordan expressed his admiration for both Ledger's Joker performance, feeling that Ledger's portrayal, as well as Michael Fassbender's Magneto, motivated an actor to deliver an awesome performance as a comic book movie villain. [80] Discussing his forthcoming portrayal as Kang the Conqueror in the MCU film Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania in anticipation of his further appearances as the character in Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars , fellow Marvel actor Jonathan Majors named Ledger's Joker as one of his inspirations to play Kang, having admired his Joker version for how far Ledger was willing to physically go during filming of The Dark Knight and for his character's complexity of good and evil, the latter deeply connecting with Majors due to growing up with a few criminals who displayed moral duality from time to time. [81] To play The Tracker in John Wick: Chapter 4 , Shamier Anderson looked at and studied Ledger's Joker due to both characters similarly lacking a backstory, wondering himself on how his character ended up the person he is in the film and even having his character's notebook taken home to write on it or engraving his name in several of the character's items, crediting that for the positive response The Tracker has received from the John Wick fans. [82] Ledger's The Dark Knight co-star David Dastmalchian revealed that in order to play Jack Delroy in Late Night with the Devil , the Cairnes brothers sent him footage of Don Lane, reminding him of the interview he had with Tom Waits that inspired Ledger's Joker, finding pretty cool the likelihood of shared inspiration. [83] On designing the titular character of his upcoming film Wolf Man , Leigh Whannell said that despite all werewolf designs across cinema, his biggest inspiration was Ledger's Joker due to staying true to the original character but taking it to another level, so he did that but creating his own version of a werewolf with makeup artist Arjen Tuiten. [84]

See also

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Batman in film</span> Film adaptations of the DC superhero

The Batman franchise, based on the fictional superhero Batman who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics, has seen the release of various films. Created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger, the character first starred in two serial films in the 1940s, Batman and Batman and Robin. The character also appeared in the 1966 film Batman, which was a feature film adaptation of the 1960s television series starring Adam West and Burt Ward, who also starred in the film. Toward the end of the 1980s, the Warner Bros. studio began producing a series of feature films starring Batman, beginning with 1989's Batman, directed by Tim Burton and starring Michael Keaton. Burton and Keaton returned for the 1992 sequel Batman Returns, and in 1995, Joel Schumacher directed Batman Forever, with Val Kilmer as Batman. Schumacher also directed the 1997 sequel Batman & Robin, which starred George Clooney. Batman & Robin was poorly received by both critics and fans, leading to the cancellation of a sequel titled Batman Unchained.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heath Ledger</span> Australian actor (1979–2008)

Heath Andrew Ledger was an Australian actor. After playing roles in several Australian television and film productions during the 1990s, he moved to the United States in 1998 to further develop his film career. His work consisted of 20 films in a variety of genres, including 10 Things I Hate About You (1999), The Patriot (2000), A Knight's Tale (2001), Monster's Ball (2001), Casanova (2005), Lords of Dogtown (2005), Brokeback Mountain (2005), Candy (2006), I'm Not There (2007), The Dark Knight (2008), and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), the latter two of which were posthumously released. He also produced and directed music videos and aspired to be a film director.

<i>The Dark Knight</i> (soundtrack) 2008 soundtrack album by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard

The Dark Knight: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is the soundtrack album to the 2008 film of the same name, which is a sequel to Christopher Nolan's 2005 film Batman Begins. The soundtrack was released on July 15, 2008, in three editions: CD, limited edition CD digipak, and digital download. The 2-CD Special Edition was released on December 9, along with the DVD. A limited edition 180-gram vinyl LP was released on August 12. The soundtrack was composed by Batman Begins collaborators Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard and recorded in April.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joker in other media</span> Adaptation of DC character Joker in media

The Joker, a supervillain in DC Comics and archenemy of the superhero Batman, has appeared in various media. WorldCat records over 250 productions featuring the Joker as a subject, including films, television series, books, and video games. Live-action films featuring the character are typically the most successful.

<i>Joker</i> (graphic novel) 2008 graphic novel by DC Comics

Joker is an American graphic novel published by DC Comics in 2008. Written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Lee Bermejo, it is based on characters from DC's Batman series, focusing primarily on the title character. It is a unique take on the Batman mythos, set outside regular continuity and narrated by one of the Joker's henchmen. The miniseries Batman: Damned is a stand-alone sequel to the graphic novel, with the miniseries incorporating certain details, settings, and designs that hint at the two stories sharing a connected narrative.

<i>The Dark Knight Rises</i> 2012 superhero film by Christopher Nolan

The Dark Knight Rises is a 2012 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan, and the story with David S. Goyer. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, it is the final installment in Nolan's The Dark Knight trilogy, and the sequel to The Dark Knight (2008). The film stars Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne / Batman, alongside Anne Hathaway, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Michael Caine. The film, set eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, follows a retired Wayne being forced to resume his role as Batman to save Gotham City from nuclear destruction at the hands of the terrorist Bane (Hardy).

<i>Batman: The Dark Knight Returns</i> (film) 2012 two-part animated film directed by Jay Oliva

Batman: The Dark Knight Returns is a two-part direct-to-video adult animated superhero film, an adaptation of the 1986 comic book The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller and is set in the same continuity as Batman: Year One. It was directed by Jay Oliva, who worked as a storyboard artist on Man of Steel, Under the Red Hood, Year One and Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Several other Batman veterans were also involved in the film. Part 1 was released on September 25, 2012, and Part 2 was released on January 29, 2013. A deluxe edition combining both films was released on October 8, 2013. Part 1 is the 15th film, and Part 2 is the 16th film, of the DC Universe Animated Original Movies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christopher Nolan filmography</span>

Christopher Nolan is a British-American film director, screenwriter, and film producer. His feature directorial debut was the neo-noir crime thriller Following (1998) which was made on a budget of $6,000. Two years later, he directed the psychological thriller Memento (2000) which starred Guy Pearce as a man suffering from anterograde amnesia searching for his wife's killer. Similar to his debut feature it had a non-linear narrative structure, and was his breakthrough film. It was acclaimed by critics and was a surprise commercial success. For the film Nolan received his first nomination for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Feature Film, and for writing its screenplay he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. He next directed the mystery thriller remake Insomnia (2002) which starred Al Pacino, Robin Williams, and Hilary Swank. It was his first film for Warner Bros., and was a critical and commercial success.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Two-Face in other media</span> Fictional character Two-Face in media

The character Two-Face was created by Bob Kane and first appeared in Detective Comics #66. However, he did not appear outside comics until half a century later in Batman: The Animated Series. Two-Face has since been substantially adapted from the comics into various forms of media, such as feature films, television series and video games. Two-Face has been voiced by Richard Moll in the DC Animated Universe, Troy Baker in the Batman: Arkham series, Billy Dee Williams in The Lego Batman Movie, and William Shatner in Batman vs. Two-Face. His live-action portrayals include Billy Dee Williams in Batman (1989), Tommy Lee Jones in Batman Forever, Aaron Eckhart in The Dark Knight, Harry Lawtey in Joker: Folie à Deux, and Nicholas D'Agosto in the television series Gotham. In 2009, Two-Face was ranked #12 on IGN's list of the Top 100 Comic Book Villains of All Time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Joker (Jack Napier)</span> Fictional character

Jack Napier, also known as the Joker, is a fictional character introduced in the 1989 superhero film Batman, directed by Tim Burton. Primarily portrayed by Jack Nicholson, the character was based on the DC Comics supervillain the Joker. His name is a play on the word Jackanapes, as well as a reference to the names Jack Nicholson and Alan Napier, the latter having portrayed Alfred Pennyworth in the 1960s Batman TV series and having died the previous year. This depiction is notable for being one of the first adaptations of the character to have a distinct first and last name, as well as one of the few instances which show his origins. This iteration of the Joker is a psychopathic gangster who serves as the right-hand man of Gotham City crime boss Carl Grissom until he is disfigured following a confrontation with the vigilante Batman; his disfigurement drives him insane, and he becomes a costumed criminal mastermind obsessed with "out-doing" the Dark Knight, who he believes is getting too much press, in addition to seeking revenge against him.

Bruce Wayne (<i>Dark Knight</i> trilogy) Fictional film character

Bruce Wayne, also known by his superhero vigilante persona Batman, is a fictional character who is the main protagonist in Christopher Nolan's trilogy of superhero films, based on the DC Comics character of the same name, created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane. Portrayed by Christian Bale, this version of Batman is arguably explored more in-depth compared to that of the previous film series by Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher, as the Dark Knight film series provides a full arc for the character and was intended by Nolan to be more realistic than previous portrayals.

The Dark Knight is a 2008 superhero film directed by Christopher Nolan from a screenplay he co-wrote with his brother Jonathan. Based on the DC Comics superhero Batman, it is the sequel to Batman Begins (2005) and the second installment in The Dark Knight Trilogy. In the film's plot, the superhero vigilante Batman, Police Lieutenant James Gordon and District Attorney Harvey Dent form an alliance to dismantle organized crime in Gotham City, but their efforts are derailed by the intervention of an anarchistic mastermind, the Joker, who seeks to test how far Batman will go to save the city from complete chaos. The ensemble cast includes Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Aaron Eckhart, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Morgan Freeman.

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