One of the most iconic villains in the Batman franchise is The Joker. The criminal mastermind has been portrayed by some of the most well-known actors of all time. Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger, and Joaquin Phoenix…The latest actor to add his name to the Joker lore is Barry Keoghan.
The Irish actor made a cameo appearance in Matt Reeves’s The Batman, as Keoghan’s Joker is seen conversing with Paul Dano’s Riddler in Arkham Asylum. Keoghan also filmed a 5-minute scene with Batman in Arkham, but it was deleted from the final cut. Regardless, Keoghan implemented a creepy voice and notorious laugh to try and differentiate from previous performances. In an interview with Collider, Keoghan explained how he crafted his version of Joker despite being intimidated by the character.
“It’s very intimidating [playing the Joker]. Heath Ledger was the best for me. So you have a lot of people to draw from and that. But again, you bring your version to it. That’s what I do with any character I play, is no one has seen my version of it,” said Keoghan. “And again, going back to it, I don’t want to be like so-and-so, and follow that method and that method. I want to do me. I want to bring my version, because I feel that is new in a way, and unique, that when you bring your version no one has seen it. And that may make people relate to it. So it was intimidating, but I was excited for it.”
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It is unknown if Keoghan will return as Joker for The Batman 2. However, the actor expressed extreme gratitude for his time on the set. In particular, Keoghan praised Reeves’s direction as well as the stellar cast in The Batman.
“Matt’s amazing. I mean, again, it’s sort of like you go into a numbness when you’re there, because you forget. Again, another great director at communicating what he wants in the most delicate way, and making you understand,” said Keoghan. “That’s the most important thing for me, is being able to understand what my director wants. But he’s just amazing. And he was so on board with me, and same with [producer] Dylan Clark and getting to do the scene with Rob [Pattinson] and Paul Dano was just, again, masterclasses.”
Watch Keoghan’s cameo appearance in The Batman, which is available to stream on HBO Max.
Do you want to see Keoghan as The Joker in future Batman movies? Leave your thoughts in the comments!
Recommended Reading: Batman: The Animated Series: The Phantom City Creative Collection
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