Though the Joker is one of DC’s most iconic villains, rewatching his live-action movie appearances highlights a handful of unpleasant truths. Long before the movies of the DCEU introduced a shared universe of DC characters, the Joker was a key part of the DC universe. As Batman’s most iconic nemesis, the Joker has proved a major player in a number of the Dark Knight’s greatest adventures, and is a regular part of movie adaptations of the hero’s world.

Over the years, many actors have played the Joker in live-action. Each new actor typically brings something new to the role, with each new adaptation attempting to put its own spin on the Dark Knight’s mythos. Across these many versions of the Joker to have appeared in live-action movies, there have been many great incarnations of the villain. Even so, rewatching the Joker’s movie appearances highlights a number of harsh realities about the character.

10

Some Of The Joker’s Best Stories Have Yet To Be Adapted

Many Key Storylines Haven’t Made It To The Big Screen

Though the Joker has appeared in many Batman movies, his many appearances haven’t truly done justice to the character’s comic book history. Across the Joker’s many decades of DC Comics appearances, he has featured in a number of the franchise’s most iconic storylines. These have involved titles such as The Killing Joke, A Death in the Family, and more, but many such stories have yet to be adapted into live-action.

Joker’s movie appearances are typically focused more on Batman than on the villain himself. What’s more, the movies in question largely tell some manner of origin story about the Joker, introducing him as a threat to Gotham City rather than adapting specific stories from the comics. However, when rewatching the Joker’s movie appearances, it becomes all too clear that some of his greatest comic book moments have yet to be brought to life in live-action on the big screen.

9

Cesar Romero’s Is Still The Most Comprehensive Joker

The ’60s Joker Came Closest To Comic Accuracy

Of all the major villains to appear in Batman movies, the Joker is by far the most iconic and prolific. The villain has been appearing in adaptations throughout Batman’s movie history, with Cesar Romero claiming the role during Batman’s TV and movie tenure in the 1960s. Romero went on to play the Joker over many years, and his version of the villain became relatively iconic in its own right.

Considering his wealth of appearances in both film and TV, Romero was afforded many opportunities in the role of the Joker. This allowed Cesar Romero’s Joker to become one of the more comprehensive takes on the character, particularly in live-action. The range of stories and the wacky but sinister spin on the character appearing in the ‘60s movie and TV show surprisingly makes Cesar Romero’s Joker one of the most comic-accurate.

8

Jack Nicholson’s Joker Was Killed Far Too Soon

A Single Movie Appearance Didn’t Do Justice To The Character

Tim Burton’s 1989 movie Batman introduced a new cinematic spin on the Dark Knight, blending gothic visuals with a dark but wacky tone. Alongside Michael Keaton’s Batman, Jack Nicholson appeared as the Joker, with the film outlining an origin story for its version of the villain. In the movie, Nicholson’s Joker is an assassin for an organized crime family who is transformed after falling into a vat of chemicals.

Nicholson’s turn in the role was excellent, but rewatching Burton’s 1989 movie makes it clear just how short-lived the actor’s chance to play the villain was. Nicholson’s Joker had so much potential to be one of the greatest live-action takes on the character, but as he was killed at the end of the movie, he had no opportunity to grow. The Joker’s abrupt death ultimately held Nicholson back from becoming even more iconic in the role.

7

Heath Ledger’s Joker Created Issues For Future Iterations

The Dark Knight’s Joker Redefined The Character

Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight trilogy is widely considered a shining example of modern superhero cinema, with The Dark Knight itself standing out as the best of the three-film arc. Heath Ledger’s Joker stole the show in the critically-acclaimed movie, with his take on the Clown Prince of Crime being one of the most innovative and memorable interpretations of the character to date. Ledger’s Joker exacted a brilliant plan to bring Gotham to its knees while exposing the hypocrisy and corruption of the city’s elite in the process.

Ledger’s Joker unfortunately created a number of issues for future incarnations of the character. The dark, gritty realism of The Dark Knight and the popularity of Ledger’s Joker saw a wave of other decidedly grim and grounded takes on comic book heroes and villains. Heath Ledger’s turn as the Joker became the benchmark against which all other Joker performances are measured, despite the fact that it’s only one potential interpretation of what the character stands for.

6

Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker Ignored A Key Aspect Of The Character

2019’s Joker Missed One Of The Villain’s Most Important Characteristics

2019 saw Todd Philips reinvent the Joker and redefine the critical potential of comic book movies in modern cinema. Philips’ movie saw Joaquin Phoenix step into the role of Arthur Fleck, a clown and would-be comedian living with an illness that left him feeling ostracized from society. The ending of Joker saw Arthur finally embrace his villainous potential, becoming the iconic antagonist.

However, Joker seemingly forgot one of the most important aspects of the character. The Joker’s backstory has always been relatively fluid, with the comics never truly settling on a single spin on his origins. Comparatively, Joker’s entire premise is about exploring the character’s past, which has long been one of DC’s greatest mysteries. Doing so meant that Joker attempted to dispel some of the enigmatic aura that surrounded the character, which in turn felt like a misunderstanding of one of his greatest qualities.

5

Barry Keoghan’s Joker Was Unnecessarily Shrouded In Mystery

Hiding Keoghan’s Joker May Have Been A Wasted Opportunity

During The Batman’s ending, the film introduced its own version of the Joker, played by Barry Keoghan. The Batman’s Joker was not shown on screen, only heard speaking with the Riddler, seemingly teasing his appearance in future sequels. Though Keoghan’s Joker made a greater appearance in a deleted scene, he was still shrouded behind clouded glass, and not shown clearly.

This approach to the Joker was ultimately unnecessary. As perhaps the most iconic Batman villain, the Joker is not a character that should be so robustly concealed. Though an air of mystery is a key part of the character, too much ultimately wastes him, as the tease feels decidedly blunt with the character being obscured as he was. In many ways, The Batman might have been better off not featuring the character at all, as the tease was ultimately a toothless one.

4

Conflicting Ideas About The Joker Make The Character Inconsistent

Varying Cinematic Interpretations Are Often Too Disparate

Something that becomes abundantly clear when rewatching the Joker’s movie appearances is that no two movies fully agree on what the character should be. Each version of the villain is decidedly different from the last, with entirely different ideas about what the character stands for. This means that the Joker has been handled very differently across his many movie appearances, with each new iteration exploring different themes and ideas.

While this makes sense, it also makes it incredibly difficult to directly compare different versions of the Joker, as they vary so much in style and character. The approach ultimately leads to the different versions of the villain seeming inconsistent rather than original, as each version appears to disagree with the others. Though the Joker is an incredibly versatile villain, so many contrasting ideas can often prove decidedly jarring upon rewatching his many appearances.

3

No Movie Joker Has Fully Achieved The Most Important Aspect Of The Villain

Contrast To Batman Is An Important Theme Of Joker Stories

As Batman’s most iconic nemesis, Joker is regularly pitted against the Dark Knight. However, through the Joker’s movie appearances, there’s a regularly missed opportunity to explore one of the key elements of the villain. His role as Batman’s archenemy means that the Joker should stand opposite the Caped Crusader, with at least some thematic contrast in their respective stories.

The Dark Knight arguably came closest to the idea, but no Batman movie has truly explored the contrast between Batman and the Joker. Where Batman stands for order, the Joker stands for chaos, and where Batman is serious, the Joker should be the opposite. However, the Joker of the movies typically reflects Batman’s tone, with grittier adaptations of the hero translating to equally gritty adaptations of the villain. This means that the Joker’s movie appearances regularly overlook one of the most important thematic aspects of the pair’s relationship.

2

Gritty Realism Can Only Capture A Small Part Of The Joker

There Is More To The Joker Than Dark Realism

Modern superhero movies typically fall into a distinct pattern, and the Joker is not exempt. Since The Dark Knight, the Joker has become an increasingly gritty character, seemingly taking inspiration from Heath Ledger’s take on the villain. The likes of Suicide Squad, Joker, and The Batman have all followed suit, putting dark and grounded spins on Batman’s arch-nemesis. That said, this approach can leave something to be desired about adaptations of the character.

Throughout the Joker’s comic book history, the villain has undergone a number of changes. Though he’s undoubtedly a dark character, he’s not without a certain amount of levity, with an air of whimsy often involved alongside his villainous antics. Repeated gritty takes on the Joker appear to have lost sight of that aspect of the character, with Batman movies attempting to make the villain as terrifying as possible rather than simply maniacal.

1

No Single Actor Can Truly Become The Joker

Versatility Is A Big Part Of The Joker’s Character

Considering the Joker’s long history of comic book appearances, the character has undergone many changes over his decades of evading the Dark Knight. This has led to a wealth of different incarnations of the Joker, with many different aspects of the villain being explored across his history. However, this contributes to a distinct issue with movie adaptations of the Joker.

Ultimately, no single actor can fully encompass the character of the Joker, as he’s become a near-mythic figure within Batman’s world. With so many approaches to the villain having been successfully explored, there’s no single angle that can provide a truly faithful adaptation of the Joker, and therefore no one actor can quite become the villain. Though there’s no real solution to the issue, it’s undoubtedly one of the harshest realities that movie adaptations of the Joker are forced to grapple with.