Is Joaquin Phoenix Set To Be The Best Joker Ever? - Warped Factor - Words in the Key of Geek.

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Is Joaquin Phoenix Set To Be The Best Joker Ever?

In which we dance with the devil in the pale moonlight.


Joaquin Phoenix is set to join a long list of esteemed actors to have played Batman’s long-term adversary on screen. But when Joker is released later this year, viewers are going to get a deep insight into the troubled character for the first time ever – not just scenes of the villain in a predominantly Batman-centered feature. Phoenix has the opportunity to explore the clown-faced criminal’s murky origins like no actor ever has before, and the 44-year-old has relished the opportunity.


The Joker begins
Ever since the Joker was first introduced in the debut Batman comic series in 1940, the character has been ubiquitous in countless comics, television, movies, and games. It is hard to think of another fictional villain - other than perhaps the classic image of Stoker's Dracula - who is so instantly recognizable and iconic.

The character has inspired other external works of fiction and iGaming projects, including Mystery Joker and Joker’s Jewels at Rizk – highly popular games found on iGaming sites such as Canada Casino. In terms of stories, some have speculated that Stephen King may have drawn some inspiration from the character's creepy aesthetic when he wrote his 1986 hit, It. The hugely popular cult-classic horror novel featured a killer clown as the main antagonist.


Mr. J's legacy
The Joker is such an enduring and much-loved character and, when it comes to casting, filmmakers have turned to some of the best actors in the business to play the role and deliver even more iconic performances. In the past, Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger, and Jared Leto have all played the Joker and illustrated that there's a lot of creative freedom when it comes to donning the green hair dye and white face paint. For instance, Nicholson opted for a more humorous approach, while Ledger’s portrayal showed the more sinister and twisted side to the Joker’s personality.

Many people say that Ledger’s performance - for which he earned a posthumous Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor – was the best ever. There is no denying that it will be hard to ever top that, but if anyone has a chance at doing so, it's Phoenix. The actor who broke onto the Hollywood scene in 2000 as Commodus in Gladiator is one of the best in the business now and has been nominated for various prestigious awards throughout his glittering career.

Phoenix was nominated for Academy Awards for his roles in Gladiator, Walk the Line, and The Master. He picked up a Golden Globe in 2006 for the Johnny Cash movie and also won some minor honors including the Dublin Film Critics’ Circle award for his work in The Master. Phoenix expressed his interest in doing a character study of a comic book villain in 2014, but said that he didn’t want to appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe across multiple films. He suggested the idea of showing a different side of the Joker, and director Todd Phillips helped pitch the proposal.

Phillips’ upcoming picture is a truly original idea and will be the first film to center on the life and troubles of a character who is usually portrayed as a warped antagonist. Phoenix has had the opportunity to make the role his own, and there is a chance that this could be the best version of the Joker ever seen on screen.

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