No Joker on Deck for Batman

Why So Serious? Well, perhaps because for some fans, this news could be a downer. Then again, for others, this news will “Put a Smile on their faces”. Director Christopher Nolan has put an end to one of the most debated and speculated questions surrounding his Batman world: Will the Joker be in Batman 3?

SuperHeroHype reports:

Director Christopher Nolan has said that the Joker will not be returning in Batman 3 or any other subsequent bat-films as long as he’s helming the franchise. From the latest issue of Empire Magazine: “‘No,’ says Nolan emphatically and unhesitatingly. He resists elaborating simply because, quite understandably, he says, ‘I just don’t feel comfortable talking about it.'”

I’m at peace with Nolan’s decision. Heath Ledger’s performance was simply outstanding. He DID deserve the Oscar, even if he was still alive. But now on regards to Batman 3, I won’t mind not seeing the Joker once again. The way Nolan left the Joker in TDK was a perfect move. Just leave him alive and well. Let us imagine that he’s back in Arkham Asylum scheming his next move. We don’t need to see him. Also, I wouldn’t want any other actor trying to fill Ledger’s shoes. That’s too much distraction – it will take away attention from the movie itself. Just move on to the next chapter on Batman’s journey – take on another villain. Probably in the future, somebody will take on the Joker again; when the Batman franchise is rebooted again.

What do you guys think? You ok with Nolan’s decision? What villains would you want to see now that the Joker won’t be included at all?

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45 thoughts on “No Joker on Deck for Batman

  1. *tear*
    I understand his decision, but I’m pretty much obsessed with the Joker (lol) so this is like a punch in the face for me

    but, as the Joker always says,

    Why so serious?

  2. I really wish people would stop saying that the Riddler is a Joker knockoff or the Joker light. The characters are very different and driven by totally different obsessions. The Joker is a psychopath with a warped, sadistic sense of humor, he literally craves chaos. The Riddler on the other hand is a narcissist, obsessed with riddles, puzzles and word games. In the comics the Riddler has been shown to be so obsessed with puzzles and word games that he’s unable to commit crimes without leaving clues or riddles. His motivation to completely different from the Joker’s and I think he would be a fascinating character on screen. While the Joker’s chaos has always played against Batman’s total self control, The Riddler has always challenged his powers of deduction. Batman is the world’s greatest detective first and foremost and I don’t think that’s really been fleshed out in the movies. Handled correctly, the Riddler is the perfect character to bring that side of Batman out. It would be cool to see him trying to figure clues and riddles that no one else can while dealing with being a fugitive. The problem is that on TV and movies the Riddler has always been portrayed as little more than a buffoon. The Riddler has investigative skills that rival Batman’s. I think the Riddler would be the perfect sort of villain for Nolan’s Dark Knight, a character that’s compelled to leave clues to his crimes even though he knows they may lead to him getting caught.

  3. I have a feeling Ra’s Al Ghul will return in the next Bat sequel. It’s too good for Nolan to pass up Liam Neeson for part 3. It would be awesome if Deathstroke were to hunt down Batman, since Bats is now the fugitive from the law at the end of The Dark Knight.

  4. Once they do this third one (which, if it is the end of Nolan’s run, I’d like to see Liam Neison return) they should wait ten years or so and give us the Dark Knight Returns (Frank Miller). By then, someone could totally pick up the reins of the Joker character without the Ledger loyalists freaking out.
    And…it would just be sweet.

  5. I totally support Nolan on this. Ledger did an AMAZING job with the Joker. Let’s just let that character lie as he is. Then Nolan can focus on bringing another villain to the screen and letting another actor take ownership of that character. Nolan can then help that actor re-imagine a whole new villain in their own original, creative way. If they did that, the audience wouldn’t be comparing two actors playing the same character–they’d be able to appreciate that new actor for what they did with their own character.

  6. I think Nolan is making the right decision. Having a new Joker reappear in his version of Gotham will be way too much of a distraction. I would imagine they pick up where TDK left off and concentrate on Batman as a fugitive. As far as who the actual villain should be, I’ve no clue. Any number of them could be given Nolan’s “real world” treatment and be effective. Now that Rachel has died, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Catwoman pop up. As much as people claim to hate her, let’s not forget that the last good Batman movie before Nolan’s reboot featured her.

  7. Sharlto Copley. Based on the guy’s performance in District 9, and from the trailers of A-Team, I think this guy is a hell of an actor. Let him try the Joker. I’ll bet that he could give us something on par with Ledger’s performance.

  8. I don’t need to see the Joker again. It was great to see what Nolan did with the character but I don’t need to see him again. Time for another villain.

  9. I’m perfectly fine with the news. But I think they’re running out of “real world” villains. So many of Batman’s nemeses are cartoony. I wonder who they’ll use? There aren’t too many who can top the Joker.

    1. Joker was the most cartoony of the bunch… any of them could be taken seriously given the right treatment, no matter how silly their animated/comic book iterations are.

      1. I think this poster is kind of right. Nolan doesn’t want to go sci-fi. That’s the issue with a lot of Batman’s rogues. Mr. Freeze? No. Killer Croc? No. Clayface? No. The Penguin is kind of a pointless character. There is the Riddler, but he is so similar to the Joker. Kind of like, a poor man’s Joker.

        There are the lesser knowns though. I guess Hush is a possibility, but in my personal opinion, no thanks.

        Ivy is too out there too. Two Face is dead.

        I will say though, he managed to pull of Scarecrow pretty well. They introduced Zsaz in the first movie, they could bring him back. Possibly do Bane right.

        That should be the third movie, or at least the title… “Knightfall.”

      2. Rodney, I’ve been reading Batman comics for over 25 years now. That is my personal opinion of the Riddler. The only thing he did that was mildly well thought out was Hush, and even that was an atrocity. Now, maybe Nolan and Goyer can write the Riddler to be interesting. I would love to see it done.

  10. While I think that any actor could be replaced, I also think it is a wise move not to have Joker in Bats 3. In fact, if Ledger had lived, I would not want Joker in there anyway. Why? Simply put, let’s look at those folks who want Joker (recast) back. What would The (Nolan) Joker do?

    That’s right. More or less the same thing he did in the previous film. It could be interesting to see another chessmatch, but we already been down that road. Joker might get an honorable mention, but you won’t see him. He would be in Arkham, planning, waiting for an opportunity.

    As much as I HATE to say it, I don’t want to see Joker in Live action until after Nolan is done and/or WB goes JLA (which will be when hell freezes over)…

    And only because the character would be a distraction. Not on who would play the character, but rather, there may be other characters to get to. A lot of folks seem to want a new Riddler. Some folks want a new Catwoman. A few still hope for Hugo Strange, Black Mask, Bane, or Jean Paul Valley. Rupert Thorne? No matter.

    What happens when you drop the Joker in the mix (or, for that matter, the always overrrated Harely Quinn?)…a new or reimagined character gets the short stick.

    Lookit, Batman Begins was still great, right? Aside from the calling card, where was The Joker? If the upcoming Bat-film does not need Joker for the story, then Joker isn’t needed.

    However— I’ll concede on a saving grace, and I hope they do it, although there hasn’t been anything on it.

    GOTHAM KNIGHT II.
    Joker (an animated one) could appear in that, couldn’t he?

  11. Given that Batman has such a large rogue’s gallery to pick from I have no problem with letting the Joker go. So far this franchise of Batman movies has only tapped Ra’s, Joker, Scarecrow, and Two Face (who I think was TOTALLY misused in TDK). Still plenty of rogues to pick from. (I’d like to see Jeff Goldblum or Brent Spiner as Freeze.)

    I myself would like to see Riddler. While Matt makes a good point about using villains that have yet to be in a movie a possible problem with that is as far as the masses are concerned (yes when it comes to the general public vs knowledgeable comic fans the masses have the fans outnumbered) such a villian would be a “nobody”.

    (Possible subplot? – Catwoman steals something and is chased by some hired hands. Batman helps her but finds out that what she stole was something dangerous and that stealing it was her way of “helping”. After the subplot is resolved Batman later discovers the name of the man that hired the guys to go after Catwoman, Lex Luthor. Just off the top of my head.)

  12. A better Bane as a main character or Black Mask would be good. The Riddler would be too close to the Joker and Penguin is weak. Also Killer Croc would not be very believable unless he was just disfigured and Mr. Freeze would be kind of hard to swallow in Nolan’s world. Catwoman would be a more 2ndary villian/hero – depends on how she would be played?

  13. That’s fine with me, BUT Joker is by far the best villan in Bats world, but unlike other Superheros, his “B-side” foes are actually interesting enough to stand on there own.

  14. I like the idea of a darker riddler, but I don’t know if there is an actor that can pull it off. In addition, it seems like the movies get a little darker each time and the riddler was never really that evil.

    Bane could make a good character. In the comics he breaks batman’s back, which could create an interesting story arc. Although I think the comics had several people handy to take up the mantle, where as the movies do not.

      1. Yeah, I guess you’re right he has the body type and maybe acting chops.

        As for using a never seen before villain, I think all the relevant villains have been used. Sure batman really fights everybody over the course of his comics, but there really are a core group that he battles over and over again and I think we’ve seen all the interesting ones.

        What I like about Nolan is he tries to address some darker issue in his batman movies and I just can’t see many villains that would be condusive to that

  15. I wonder if Joker would have returned if Ledger was still alive…Thats the only part I am having trouble with. On one hand I agree with Nolan and am fine with moving on and wrapping up the trilogy. Yet, on the other hand I think to myself “If Ledger was alive, would Joker be part of the story for Batman 3? And if so, then why not recast him?

    Its a tough decision either way, but I am confidant Nolan made the right decision and that he has a good story to tell without the Joker. I only hope they dont pretend he doesnt exist in the next one. There shoudl be some mention of him. I would like to see how Batman has grown because of his experience with Joker…

    1. Judging by his quote saying “I don’t want to talk about it” it sounds like Nolan was deeply moved by the loss of Ledger, and not using Joker is as much a tribute and honourific to the actor as much as the character he played.

      And honestly, we dont need to see Joker again for a long while. There are plenty of other awesome Batman rogues to choose from.

      1. Did they? Both of those films were pretty lackluster in my recollection. Im thinking more in terms that the effect Joker must have had on Batman/Bruce Wayne that he should have been fundamentally changed in a noticeable way and that in and of itself is a tribute to the character and the actor. Joker left his fingerprints on Batman and Gotham and I hope that is reflected in the next chapter of the story.

  16. I am fine with Nolan not deciding to have Joker back in Batman 3. There are plenty of other villians to chose from for Nolan to work with. I was thinking he can bring Zsasz into the spotlight, have Batman pursue him as one of the remaining inmates who escaped Arkham in the first one. Also I think Black Mask could be an interesting character to have in the films. Black Mask is very sadistic and could really play in the dark edgy feel that Nolan has been putting into the movies.

  17. I’m happy no Joker in Batman 3 and Ledger’s performance was truely amazing but it’s not far to the fans never use the character again. When a new director steps in we can have a new Joker, maybe a new Batman though.

    I wouldn’t be surprised if Ledger was still with us he’d turn down the role though.

    As long as we don’t get Robin I’m happy

  18. thats where you guys don’t get, we already have rebooted so need reboot on batman franchise please, so till then we will use all villians on this batman franchise,

    Bro, three films are going to be trilogy and then it will still continue with different director and he will use joker,

    not reboot in order to use JOKER AGAIN…

  19. GREAT!! Everything that needed to be said about the Joker was said in The Dark Knight. Batman is a huge franchise and Nolan doesnt need to go back to the well with the Joker. Let him use his creativity with a new villian.

  20. I am ok with this news despite how saddened I am to see that my favorite comic book villian won’t be returning to the screen in all his glory. Heath Ledger did an amazing job as the Joker and despite the fact that people shouldn’t they will be comparing anyone else’s performance to his, just like we compared his performance to Jack Nicholsan. The good part to this is that they now have room to incorporate so many other Batman villians that otherwise would have been overshadowed by the Joker’s constant apperance.

      1. A lot of people complain of always seeing lex in the superman movies. He has other villains.

        When you make three movies, there shouldn’t be a need for a villain to return. Especially not when Batman has such a well known rogue gallery.

        If there was a Batman 4 5 or 6, maybe you could justify bringing joker back, but give the other villains a shot.

  21. I think that with some slight deviation from her origin story, they could include Harley Quinn. Not as a main villain, but maybe as like a secondary villain. Then they would still have a Joker element without including the actual Joker.

  22. That’s the problem with the Joker.

    If you add him there will be too much focus on seeing how he stacked up against Ledger. It distracts for the reason to have him in the film.

    Joker is a classic and reoccurring Batman foe, but he needs to be there because of the Joker…. not Ledger.

    1. I think it’ll be a tall order for any actor trying to portray the Joker in future Bat flicks. He’ll surely be compared to Heath Ledger’s performance. Ledger made the Joker role his own. Perhaps someone might surpass him . But at this point, it’s a no contest.

      1. The same was said about Nicholson’s performance. I’m not saying the next Joker will surpass Ledger’s. But anyone can take on a character and make it their own.

      2. In this case though you would not want someone to make the role their own, it would have to be Ledgers version, this is a direct follow up to Dark Knight not another stab at the Joker after a twenty year gap. I agree with Rodneys point, and I also wish that Two-Face wasnt killed. Really I dont think they should try to top the Joker in scale of villiany, the focus should be back on Batman as a fugitive.

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