Ever since Robert Pattinson was cast as Batman, fans have been asking for Bill Skarsgård to be cast as Joker alongside him.
With a new Batman saga hitting the big screen just around the corner, the time has come to choose the actor who’s going to portray the Dark Knight’s other half. And we’re not talking about any romantic interest here, either. As much as Ying can’t exist without a Yang, Batman needs the chaos brought by the Joker to survive.
Each new Batman cinematic entry has offered its unique takes on both Bruce Wayne and the Joker. 2022’s The Batman seems to be one of the darkest takes on the iconic DC character to ever hit the silver screen, so an appropriately dark Joker is a must.
That said, there’s hardly anyone in the film industry that can play a menacing clown (like Joker) as well as Bill Skarsgård.
Bill Skarsgard as The Joker by @WillGray_06 pic.twitter.com/BQ5tunkd7P
— Battman 🦇 (@BatmanFiles) September 21, 2020
Clowning Around
Perhaps most people know Bill Skarsgård as the terrifying Pennywise from the It duology. Skargsgård terrific acting chops made it clear that he makes playing a killer clown look easy, giving the character an otherworldly flair that’s hard to match. Even more impressive is the fact that many of Pennywise’s mannerisms were improvised by Skarsgård, like his drooling and his drifting eye.
If one skill needed to play the Joker is to be able to scare the audience, then Bill Skarsgård has pretty much nailed the role already. There’s also the fact that the Joker isn’t a very defined character beyond his clown makeup. Different comic book writers have given the Joker different personalities, ranging from a suave gangster, all the way to a deranged maniac.
Having Bill Skarsgård on board would require The Batman to get the scariest version of the Joker possible, and that would be the one from Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth.
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Menacing Presence
As scary as the concept of a murderous clown can be, Arkham Asylum takes that idea to the next level. In this comic, Batman is called to help with a hostage situation inside the infamous Arkham Asylum. In there, he comes face to face with some of his most deranged adversaries, and even worse, his darkest fears.
While this comic features some of the most creative designs for some of Batman’s gallery of rogues, not one of them comes close to how delightfully evil the Joker looks. In fact, this version of the Joker seems more as if someone took the clown’s raw malice and made it a character.
This Joker acts more like the dark side of Batman’s conscience. Gone is the clown that foils Batman’s every move, and in comes the devil-like incarnation of chaos that makes Arkham Asylum hell on Earth.
Bill Skarsgård would play this character amazingly well, considering that Pennywise was pretty much another version of a hellish clown. Actually, a darker version of the Joker looks like the only way to go with this new take on the Batman formula, as the DCEU seems to be distancing itself more and more from the style of the MCU.
While it has been confirmed that the Riddler is going to be the main villain of 2022’s The Batman, this will be the perfect opportunity to establish the Joker as a force of ultimate evil that works from the shadows.
A new and darker chapter in the DCEU would be the best way to counter the MCU’s cheery approach to storytelling. A darker Batman deserves a more evil Joker, and there’s no one better than Bill Skarsgård to continue the tradition of playing the most infamous comic book villain of all time.
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