Featured Image Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures
Topics: Batman, DCU, DC, DC Comics, TV And Film
I don’t think it’s controversial to claim that The Joker is the most iconic comic book villain of all-time.
It’s no wonder that it’s a role that so many actors are clamouring to take on.
My personal favourite performance came from the late, great Heath Ledger, and I’m sure many of you are on the same page.
Jack Nicholson, Mark Hamill, Jared Leto, Joaquin Phoenix, Troy Baker, Alan Tudyk, and Cesar Romero are a few of the other names to have portrayed the character, whether that be in live-action or animation.
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Assumedly, the character will surface at some point within James Gunn and Peter Safran’s rebooted DCU, and one MCU actor is letting it be known that he’d like to assume the role.
That actor is Chukwudi Iwuji.
It’s very early days for the DCU with Batman not due to debut until The Brave and the Bold lands which doesn’t yet have a release date.
There’s no word on whether that film will feature a version of The Joker, but it’s hard to imagine having such an iconic character be totally absent from this cinematic universe.
Don’t forget that whilst Matt Reeves’ The Batman did tease a joker, portrayed by Barry Keoghan, that film exists within the Elseworlds timeline and is not canon to the DCU.
As for what Iwuji has to say, he’s made his yearning to portray the character quite clear.
In an interview with YouTube’s The Movie Dweeb, as spotted by ComicBook, Iwuji praised the depth of the character.
“There has to be something maniacal about the Joker, right? But ‘maniacal’ has such a huge range,” he began.
“The part of Heath Ledger’s Joker that moved me most was when you realise that he keeps making up a story about his father each time. And when I asked myself, ‘Well, why would you do that?’ Again, that loneliness and that he’s covering up with this flamboyant thing, but he keeps making up a story about his father.”
“I think it comes from a guy that feels the need to make up a story about his father and that there’s a guy that wishes he could be dancing on the steps with water and not give a shit, but he has this mantle of being the Joker to play,” he continued, touching upon Phoenix’s portrayal.
“So there’ll be a deep sadness in him. I just feel there’s so much richness about sadness with the Joker. And when you’re so laser-focused on your inner turmoil, the things you could do to other people without even it counting is very scary.”
As for where you may know Iwuji, he so excellently portrayed the High Evolutionary in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3.
I remember seeing videos of the actor in costume as the character at San Diego Comic Con back in 2022. He oozed power.
There is the small problem that Iwuji already portrayed Clemson Murn / Ik Nobe Lok in Peacemaker but plenty of actors have pulled double duty in superhero franchises before.
Just look at, say, Gemma Chan bringing both Minn-Erva in Captain Marvel and Sersi in Eternals to life.
It awaits to be seen what Gunn and Safran will do with The Joker, but I’d certainly love to see Iwuji’s take.