Who was the Joker in ‘The Batman’?

Warning: The following article contains spoilers for The Batman.

The Batman continues its theatrical run with overwhelming praise for its plot, performances, action, cinematography, and style. While much of the Robert Pattinson led cast had been announced long before the movie was released, there was a particular sighting in the film that was sure to raise eyebrows, as well as trigger anticipation for a potential sequel — the surprising presence of the Joker.

Fans of the superhero Batman have long wondered whether his iconic foe, the Clown Prince of crime, will make an appearance in the new universe created by the director, Matt Reeves. While the thrilling movie centered on notable foes Riddler and Penguin, played by Paul Dano and Colin Farrell respectively, we were introduced to the classic Joker right at the end of the film. 

In a pivotal scene, after Dano’s Riddler is aggravated at the foiling of his plans to destroy Gotham, he encounters a fellow inmate at Arkham, who says in a coy voice, “Isn’t that just terrible? Him raining on your parade like that? One day you’re on top, the next you’re a clown. Let me tell you, there are worse things to be.”

When asked who he is, he responds: “Riddle me this: The less of them you have, the more one is worth.” As the Riddler answers, “a friend”, the two share a boisterous laugh, indicating the birth of a partnership. In case, anyone still has doubts whether the “Unseen Arkham Prisoner” is indeed the Joker, Reeves has confirmed the same in a recent interview.

Who plays the Joker?

The character was played by Barry Keoghan, who was recently made his MCU debut as the superpowerful Druig in Eternals. The actor brought his own mysterious chill to the iconic personality previously brought to life by the memorable Heath Ledger, via Joaquin Phoenix’s Oscar-winning performance, and many others.

Initially, in a bid to misdirect DC fans, it was announced that Barry Keoghan has joined the cast of The Batman as the Gotham City cop Stanley Merkel. But as the release date of the film came closer, rumors spread that he was actually playing the Joker instead. Well, the Arkham Asylum scene couple with Keoghan’s mad cackle was all the confirmation fans needed.

Reeves has admitted that he was looking for someone who was “fearless” to take on the role of the Joker since Joaquin Phoenix’s critically lauded portrayal of the character made the task even more challenging. While he expected fear and nervousness from anyone daring to take up the role, Keoghan was “full in.”

“We made a really concerted effort to make this different from the other Batman movies, because we needed to. It’s something to think about with the Joker. It’s been done well, a number of times. I said to Barry, right from the beginning, ‘Look, I don’t know where this is going to go. I can’t promise that it’ll even ever come back. I don’t know.’ And I still feel that way now. I’m not sure exactly. I was looking not only for somebody who was a good actor, but somebody who was fearless.

Joaquin, as we were making the movie, had just won the Oscar. They already thought you can’t do the Joker again after Heath Ledger. And then Joaquin comes in. So I can imagine an actor going like, ‘There’s nowhere to go but down!’. Barry was full in. That, along with the fact that I loved him as an actor, was the deciding factor. And we did it.”

Keoghan had more scenes as the Joker

Apparently, Keoghan actually had more than one scene in the original cut of the film, but Reeves ended up removing it. While chatting with IGN, the director revealed how the “Joker is not yet the Joker” in this scene but he and Batman already have a “relationship.”

“The scene that was not in the movie, the scene that this is really the companion to, which is actually a really cool scene that will release at some point, it’s a scene where Batman is so unnerved because the Riddler is writing to him. And he’s like, ‘Well, why is this guy writing to me?’ And he figures he’s got to profile this killer. He goes to see another killer that he’s clearly had an experience with in these first two years.

And this killer in this story is not yet the character that we come to know, right? So everybody’s in their infancy. So in the comics, these characters often declare their alter egos in response to the fact that there’s a Batman out there. And so here, we have a Joker who’s not yet the Joker.”

Even though Keoghan’s portrayal of the unhinged villain was limited to the closing minutes of the film, the haunting scene is sure to leave a mark on moviegoers. While Reeves has assured that the scene was not included in a bid to trigger hype for a sequel, viewers who were hooked by the actor’s scene-stealing performance as the Joker will certainly look forward to his return in future installments of The Batman.