Warning: Spoilers for “The Batman” follow below.
The new reboot “The Batman” serves as an introduction for Robert Pattinson’s iteration of the Caped Crusader, but the film also introduces a new version of another iconic character: The Joker.
Towards the end of the film, a character officially credited as “Unseen Arkham Prisoner” appears through the shadows, makes reference to clowns and lets out a maniacal laugh. Yes, that’s The Joker – although it’s not The Joker fans know. Not yet.
You’d be forgiven for asking who plays The Joker in that scene, given that the character’s face is kept in the dark. So who plays The Joker? It’s actor Barry Keoghan under the makeup, potentially setting up an appearance in a future film or even an HBO Max spinoff.
Keoghan is probably best known for playing the character Druig in the 2021 Marvel movie “Eternals,” but also may be familiar to those who saw Christopher Nolan’s “Dunkirk” – he played George Mills, a young boy who snuck onto a boat to aid in the WWII evacuation.
Since his breakout role in 2014’s “’71,” the 29-year-old Irish actor has been making waves with smaller roles in films like 2017’s “The Killing of a Sacred Deer,” 2018’s “American Animals” or 2021’s “The Green Knight,” in which he played the Scavenger. But if his role as The Joker in “The Batman” is a tease for future appearances, Keoghan is stepping into the spotlight in a big way.
“The Batman” co-writer and director Matt Reeves recently revealed that Keoghan actually had another scene as Joker in the film but it was cut. “There is a scene that I would love the audience to see that I didn’t put in,” Reeves told Collider. “Not because anyone asked me to cut it, but because I didn’t think that within the larger narrative it worked, that it was necessary. But it’s a really cool scene with that same unseen prisoner in Arkham. There was an earlier scene where Batman, because he’s getting these cards and letters from the Riddler, and he’s thinking, ‘why is this guy writing to me? I’m supposed to be anonymous and he’s putting a lens on me. I don’t like that,’ and so he goes to kind of profile this kind of serial killer.”
Reeves continued to describe the scene, revealing that The Joker in “The Batman” is not quite yet The Joker. “And you see him meeting with somebody who is obviously a serial killer himself, who, because it’s not Batman’s origin, but it is the origins of all these other characters, you’re seeing a version of this character who, yes, when you see the unknown prisoner, you’re like, ‘well, gee, I think that’s who that is.’ Well, that is who that is, but he’s not yet that character.”
As for The Joker’s look in “The Batman,” he’s purposefully obscured but Reeves told IGN that the character’s look is due to a congenital disease. “He can never stop smiling. And it made Mike [Marino, prosthetic makeup designer] and I think about — I was talking about ‘The Elephant Man; because I love David Lynch. And I was like, ‘Well, maybe there’s something here where it’s not something where he fell in a vat of chemicals or it’s not the [Christopher] Nolan thing where he has these scars and we don’t know where they came from. What if this is something that he’s been touched by from birth and that he has a congenital disease that refuses to let him stop smiling? And he’s had this very dark reaction to it, and he’s had to spend a life of people looking at him in a certain way and he knows how to get into your head.'”
Warner Bros. has not yet officially greenlit a sequel to “The Batman” even though Pattinson and Reeves have expressed interest in continuing, and it’s also not a given that Keoghan’s The Joker would be a major part of any potential sequel.
But it’s certainly a tantalizing tease, and Keoghan joins a long line of talented performers like Heath Ledger, Jack Nicholson and Joaquin Phoenix who have inhabited this iconic DC Comics character.
“The Batman” is now playing exclusively in theaters.
By Maddy Casale
April 19, 2022 // 4:13pm
Warning: Spoilers for The Batman below!
Since it premiered in theaters in March, The Batman has been the hottest movie-related topic of conversation (that doesn’t involve one grown man slapping another grown man on live television during an awards show being broadcast to a worldwide audience). Now that the superhero crime-drama is available on HBO Max, it is open to an even wider audience that has the power to pause and rewind. So it’s no surprise that this big-name film depicting the latest iteration of DC Comics’ classic character, Batman, is turning heads thanks to the understated appearance of one the the baddest and most renowned Batman villains of all-time… The Joker.
To set the record straight, The Batman actually doesn’t have a whole lot to do with The Joker. This time around, the big baddie is The Riddler (Paul Dano), who has been targeting Gotham City’s elite through a series of murders and leaving a trail of cryptic clues in his wake. The Batman (Robert Pattinson) swiftly follows the trail, leading him on an investigation into Gotham’s dark underworld where he encounters unforgettable characters like Catwoman (Zoë Kravitz), The Penguin (Colin Farrell), Carmine Falcone (John Turturro), and, of course, The Riddler. When the evidence starts leading close to home and reveals the full (and frightening) scale of the perpetrator’s plans, it is up to Batman to forge new relationships, unmask the culprit, and bring justice to Gotham City.
So where the heck does The Joker come into this?!
Towards the end of the movie, The Riddler is finally caught and upon his arrest, is unmasked to reveal forensic accountant Edward Nashton. Nashton is sent to Arkham Asylum, where he makes a… very interesting new friend. We never clearly see this character who is credited as “Unseen Arkham Prisoner,” but judging by his distinctive laugh (as well as confirmation from director Matt Reeves, himself), we’re left with no doubt that The Joker is there, hanging around, just waiting for the chance to cause some havoc. But who even is this blurry face behind the newest Joker? Keep reading to find out.
WHO IS BARRY KEOGHAN, WHO PLAYS THE JOKER IN THE BATMAN?
Though we don’t see him clearly as he talks through his Asylum cell door with The Riddler, we now know thanks to the credits and confirmation from Reeves that The Joker is played by Irish actor Barry Keoghan. While most of what we see of Keoghan’s Joker in the final cut of the film is a distorted, partially-visible figure, the actor still leaves a strong impression thanks to that iconic Joker laugh. And if that wasn’t enough to leave you with chills, then there’s no doubt that a recently released deleted scene from the film will. The five minute clip showcases Keoghan’s acting chops, as we see the full spectrum of his affecting and horrifying take on the psychotic villain.
Before The Batman, the 29 year-old actor had already made quite the name for himself. Over the past 11 years he’s spent as a professional actor, Keoghan has amassed an impressive filmography bolstered by roles like Wayne in Love/Hate, Martin Lang in The Killing of Sacred Deer, George Mills in Dunkirk, Spencer Reinhard in American Animals, Pavel in Chernobyl, Dymphna in Calm With Horses, Scavenger in The Green Knight, and Druig in Eternals. He is the winner of an Irish Film and Television Award for Best Supporting Actor, and has been nominated for a British Independent Film Award, an Independent Spirit Award, and two BAFTAs.
Outside of acting, Keoghan is an ambassador for both Dior and Barretstown, as well as a proud dog owner, and an amateur boxer.
For even more from your new favorite Joker, be sure to follow him on Twitter and Instagram.
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