Barry Keoghan’s Famous Co-Star Predicted He’d Play The Joker 5 Years Before He Was In The Batman

The Batman actor Barry Keoghan reveals that his co-star and Penguin actor Colin Farrell once accurately predicted his DC movie casting. Matt Reeves’ The Batman follows Robert Pattinson’s Dark Knight as he crosses paths with three iconic Gotham villains for the first time: the Riddler, the Penguin, and Catwoman. However, a fourth Batman enemy is introduced during The Batman‘s ending scenes, when the Riddler meets his cellmate — who’s none other than the Joker. Although The Batman doesn’t fully show the Dark Knight’s archnemesis on screen, a deleted scene confirms that Barry Keoghan portrays the Joker in Matt Reeves’ The Batman trilogy.

Barry Keoghan’s limited screentime in The Batman is just a small taste of what the actor has in store for the character, but it seems like his potential has been clear for years. In a recent GQ video (via YouTube), Barry Keoghan reminisces about his experience shooting Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Killing of a Sacred Deer, where he co-starred with Colin Farrell, who plays the Penguin in The Batman. According to Keoghan, Farrell was so impressed with his performance as the eccentric teenager Martin Lang that he said “you’re gonna probably play the Joker one day after this character”. Watch the video below:

Will Barry Keoghan’s Joker Appear In The Batman 2?

Little is known about The Batman – Part II‘s plot and cast, but The Batman‘s ending does seem to set up an eventual team-up between the Riddler and the Joker. It’s unlikely that Robert Pattinson’s Batman will fight Barry Keoghan’s Joker in the first sequel, though, as such a story would likely share too many similarities with Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight. Besides, there are many other members of Batman’s rogue gallery that could make for a more interesting threat on the big screen than the Joker, who has been translated to the big screen multiple times already.

Nevertheless, Barry Keoghan’s Joker could still be a supporting character in The Batman – Part II, possibly as the mastermind behind a brewing plan to break himself and other patients out of Arkham. Otherwise, Keoghan’s Joker could be the Arkham patient Batman could resort to when he needs help to defeat The Batman – Part II‘s main villain. After all, the fact that the Joker is already at Arkham suggests that he and Batman already have an established history despite Batman’s short career as a vigilante.

Another possibility for the Joker’s role in The Batman – Part II would be a flashback scene that either shows how exactly Robert Pattinson’s Batman captured Barry Keoghan’s Joker and sent him to Arkham or reveals how he developed his facial scarring and adopted the Joker persona. Alternatively, The Batman – Part II could simply feature another brief Joker cameo that sets up a bigger role for the villain in The Batman – Part III, or skip a new appearance altogether and instead incorporate The Batman‘s deleted scene at some point in The Batman – Part II‘s story.