Here’s What Joaquin Phoenix Would Look Like As The Joker

DC fans had their minds blown back in the summer when it was revealed that an origins movie for the Joker was in the works. Sitting outside the DC Extended Universe, the film is set to feature a new actor as the Clown Prince of Crime in place of Jared Leto. Furthermore, The Hangover’s Todd Phillips is directing with legendary filmmaker Martin Scorsese on hand to produce.

Still, back when the news broke, there wasn’t any guarantee that the project would see the light of day anytime soon. After all, plenty of other DC films have been announced only to never end up materializing. That won’t be the case for The Joker, though, as we learned not too long ago that it’s actually being fast-tracked into production and not only that, but the studio is already closing in on finding their new Mr. J.

Yup, that’s right, as you’ve probably heard by now, The Master star Joaquin Phoenix is in talks to play the iconic villain and though it’s not fully confirmed just yet, he is said to be the first choice and a deal’s expected to go through. Now, as he so often does, fan artist extraordinaire Boss Logic has come up with a design showing us how the actor may look in the role.

Check it out down in the gallery below and let us know what you think:

Not bad, right? We’ll be the first to say that Phoenix would be a solid choice for the part, as he’s a tremendously talented individual, but it’s still tough to even get on board with this project in the first place as it really does seem a bit unnecessary. After all, if you’re even remotely familiar with the Clown Prince of Crime, then you’d know he has no true origin story.

Granted, tales such as The Killing Joke and Lovers and Madmen have filled in some blanks, but the former stressed that Joker himself prefers for his background to be “multiple choice.” Because of this, readers have deduced that he’s often lying when discussing his history, or that he’s so far gone he can’t properly remember it. Not surprisingly, this has already become a hot point for discussion on social media, with there being arguments for both sides (but mostly negative).

It’s also worth mentioning that literally any of Batman’s other villains would make for great origin movies because most of them can invoke a twinge of sympathy and are actually relatable in their own twisted way. Not The Joker, though. Still, that isn’t stopping Warner Bros. and with any luck, we’ll start to get some firm casting details in the not too distant future. Until then, though, be sure to leave us a comment with your thoughts on Phoenix potentially bringing the character to life in the usual place.