It appears that Warner Bros. are keen to expand on the success of Joker for more standalone movies and television series set outside the main DCEU and Arrowverse canon, with several of them reportedly set to appear on new streaming platform HBO Max. In fact, according to our sources – the same ones who told us the Guardians will cameo in Thor: Love and Thunder and Aladdin 2 is in development, both of which we now know to be true – WB want to adapt Batman: White Knight. Even better, though, is that one actor that they’re eyeing is Matt Damon, who they want to play the Joker and Jack Napier in the limited series, which will apparently be its own thing and completely separate from the DCEU and the Jokerverse.
For those not aware of it, White Knight is one of the most popular limited Batman series of the last few years. The Sean Murphy-written story originally ran from 2017 to 2018, and hinged on the Joker becoming ‘sane’ and reverting to his Jack Napier personality. During the eight-issue series, Napier becomes a powerful political figure who exposes the negative impact of Batman on Gotham City, raising difficult questions about who’s done the most damage to its citizens.
White Knight has since spun off a sequel, Batman: Curse of the White Knight, and plans for a mini-universe of stories set in Murphy’s world. The original White Knight story appears ideal for adaptation, too, given that it presents a fresh take on familiar characters, and particularly the Joker. In this context, Matt Damon would make an excellent choice for the series, at least in terms of the Jack Napier side of things. Whether he can pull off the Joker is another question, although it’d be fascinating to see what he could do with the character.
In any case, things are still at an early stage in terms of any official confirmation of a Batman: White Knight adaptation going ahead, although the news does support previous reports that WB want to adapt Batman: Gotham by Gaslight and other one-off villain stories. HBO Max, which will also be the home for the upcoming Green Lantern series, could foreseeably create its own identity within the DC family with these Elseworlds and Black Label-type tales, and it certainly sounds like that’s the plan right now.
What do you think of a Batman: White Knight live-action series with Matt Damon as the Joker, though? As always, let us know in the comments section down below.
