GameSpot may receive revenue from affiliate and advertising partnerships for sharing this content and from purchases through links.

An Old The Dark Knight Rises Rumor Confirmed By Heath Ledger's Family

Do you want to see a magic trick?

73 Comments

When The Dark Knight first hit theaters in 2008, fans were immediately taken with Heath Ledger's The Joker. The now-iconic portrayal of Batman's biggest villain overshadowed just about anything else in the movie.

Unfortunately, the one thing it didn't overshadow was Ledger's untimely death months before the film's release. While it was never confirmed, many fans believed the original plan was to feature Ledger once again in Christopher Nolan's third Batman movie. After all, at the end of The Dark Knight, The Joker is left dangling from a building.

No Caption Provided

Now, Ledger's intentions to wear The Joker's face paint for the director once again are becoming more clear. In 2016, Kate Ledger--the actor's sister--spoke with Australian press outlet news.com.au about a documentary on her brother's life. While the interview is nearly a year old, it's definitely new to some and provides some very interesting insight into Ledger's mind after production wrapped on the film.

"He was so proud of what he had done in Batman. And I know he had plans for another Batman," she says. "He loved working with Chris Nolan and Christian Bale and Gary Oldman. He just had the best time ever doing that film. When he came home at Christmas, he couldn't wait to tell us all about it, and he was doing the voice and laughing, showing me all the rushes. We had a great time."

Regardless of the circumstances of his death, to his family, Ledger was quite pleased with the character he was able to create and was eager to revisit it. Unfortunately, any plans he had never came to pass.

In the aftermath of Ledger's death, Nolan instead cast Tom Hardy to play the antagonist Bane in 2012's The Dark Knight Rises. Sadly, that leaves the world with no idea about what a second movie featuring Ledger as The Joker would be like. There's still The Dark Knight, though, which the actor posthumously won an Oscar for.

Got a news tip or want to contact us directly? Email news@gamespot.com

Join the conversation
There are 73 comments about this story
73 Comments  RefreshSorted By 
  • 73 results
  • 1
  • 2
GameSpot has a zero tolerance policy when it comes to toxic conduct in comments. Any abusive, racist, sexist, threatening, bullying, vulgar, and otherwise objectionable behavior will result in moderation and/or account termination. Please keep your discussion civil.

Avatar image for urbanman2004
urbanman2004

849

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

Edited By urbanman2004

Ledger GOAT as Joker

2 • 
Avatar image for Redblaze27
Redblaze27

356

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 7

User Lists: 0

I mean, its quite Obvious that Scarecrow's role in the Dark Knight Rises was meant for the Joker.

Upvote • 
Avatar image for awarbrick89
awarbrick89

78

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

Well.... If everyone is okay with it? They are getting to the point where they can basically do what Al Pacino did in the the movie 'Simone' but for real! Wait, I'm sorry "SimONE"...

Remember Rogue One bringing Peter Cushing back to life? Im sure they could use A.I. to learn Heath's moves and mannerisms and recreate it?..... But,,,,, would we want to?........

Upvote • 
Avatar image for Red_hot_smasher
Red_hot_smasher

215

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

@yinacoyuto: møøse

Upvote • 
Avatar image for JRichter85
JRichter85

46

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 0

They should have never killed off two face. He would have been awesome as a villain.

9 • 
Avatar image for xenomorphalien
XenomorphAlien

5118

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 7

User Lists: 0

Edited By XenomorphAlien

Best actor for the Joker. But I still think Mark Hamill has the best Joker voice.

9 • 
Avatar image for gamingdevil800
gamingdevil800

7159

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 76

User Lists: 0

Edited By gamingdevil800

Best Joker so far.. I really hope one day we will get another Joker as good as this. William Dafoe would be amazing if he ever gets the role.

4 • 
Avatar image for santinegrete
santinegrete

7098

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 46

User Lists: 0

Why he had to go? WHY?

Why the untalented bunch lives longer?!

7 • 
Avatar image for Rufus_the_rat
Rufus_the_rat

853

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 0

@santinegrete: Because Hollywood stars have a real "talent" for committing suicide. Heath made the choice to end his life early when he started down the path of abusing drugs.

Upvote • 
Avatar image for nepu7supastar7
nepu7supastar7

6773

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 51

User Lists: 0

He was a great Joker but I still think they can find a better one.

Upvote • 
Avatar image for nomadski69
nomadski69

3433

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 5

User Lists: 0

@nepu7supastar7: It woould take something truly mindblowing to one up what Heath did with the role. Lets also not forget the vitriol posted on forums at the time when he was announced as the actor to play the Joker. To go from that starting point to what we eventually saw on screen was IMO the greatest turnaround of expectations in cinema history.

I'm not saying we can't have another great Joker, we've had it in animated form, but I can't envisage anyone to play the role so fully, so rounded and so kickass as Ledger did.

Helped he had a great director moving the film along too.

5 • 
Avatar image for nepu7supastar7
nepu7supastar7

6773

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 51

User Lists: 0

@bugsplatreport:

You and every fan of Batman know I'm right. Heath was his own version of the Joker which was awesome but he was far from THE Joker.

Upvote • 
Avatar image for TacticaI
TacticaI

1366

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

Edited By TacticaI

@nepu7supastar7: “THE” Joker? That doesn’t come off pretentious at all. /s

Of course he was his own version, every iteration of these characters are someone’s version or interpretation of said character. That in no way takes away from how well he executed his portrayal of the Joker, no matter how hard fanboys try with their preconceived notions or film snobs try by comparing him to the best actors in the industry.

3 • 
Avatar image for santinegrete
santinegrete

7098

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 46

User Lists: 0

@nepu7supastar7: just don't say Letto can be better. He had a chance, it's arguable if it's good or bad (I'm indifferent). But it's not better than Heath's.

3 • 
Avatar image for nepu7supastar7
nepu7supastar7

6773

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 51

User Lists: 0

Edited By nepu7supastar7

@santinegrete:

Leto's Joker was New 52 and it was executed pretty badly too so, no. His Joker did suck. Minus points for unoriginality and poorly done.

3 • 
Avatar image for RedWave247
RedWave247

1915

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 7

User Lists: 0

Edited By RedWave247

@nepu7supastar7: There's no particularly solid "THE" Joker, though. He's had so many interpretations over the decades that there's no one version that defines him. He was a murderer using Joker gas, a bank robber with elaborate traps and tricks (Adam West Batman and the Silver Age when depictions of murder were frowned upon), a gangster (Animated Series, Tim Burton films), a trickster, etc. His personality has been invariably different depending on the creative team.

The movie - and especially Heath himself - did their own interpretation. So did Suicide Squad (which I hated, but as I said, another interpretation isn't without precedence).

4 • 
Avatar image for nepu7supastar7
nepu7supastar7

6773

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 51

User Lists: 0

Edited By nepu7supastar7

@RedWave247:

That was kinda my point. We all know that there is a Joker for every universe but every version carries over the most basic personality traits. There is no solid Joker but they all still have big similarities.

Heath's Joker felt very different in almost every way. It was toned down, realistic but there was enough familiarity that made him recognizable. But even then, I don't feel like he OWNED the role. Maybe it was because he only got one film but something about him felt a teensy bit off. Like even *he* wasn't sure what he was going for at the time.

Upvote • 
Avatar image for RedWave247
RedWave247

1915

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 7

User Lists: 0

@nepu7supastar7: I can somewhat agree that most Jokers share similarities. I'd argue Ledger's Joker does, too. He believes in chaos, lies about not having a plan and yet is three steps ahead of everyone or has backup plans, takes advantage of Batman's sanctity for life, and isn't funny. That's one thing I believe many people - even die-hard Joker fans- don't understand about the character. I had a friend say before the movie came out, "But Heath Ledger isn't funny! He doesn't do comedy!" I said, "Good! Joker shouldn't be funny! He should be terrifying. He's like the kind of person who laughs at his own jokes." Is he different from any Joker we've seen before? Absolutely. But as you said, he carries many core personality traits.

I also strongly disagree that Ledger wasn't sure what he was going for. I think he put more thought and consideration into the role than even Christopher Nolan did. He has many little character ticks that you could pick apart that add to the character. Watch Movies with Mikey's video on The Dark Knight. He makes some excellent points. For example, the make-up made Ledger's lips dry. Instead of changing the make-up he made it part of the character.

2 • 
Avatar image for gamingdevil800
gamingdevil800

7159

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 76

User Lists: 0

@bugsplatreport: Yh i agree but there is one guy who could do a really good joker performance... William Dafoe the guy has the look and the voice his Green Goblin performance was so Joker-esque.

2 • 
Avatar image for scatterbrain007
scatterbrain007

841

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

@gamingdevil800: Wilem Dafoe is a great casting for The Joker. Leto is a great actor, and his portrayal didn't get enough screen time. There's a lot of potential there.

Upvote • 
Avatar image for burnettaj
burnettaj

262

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 14

User Lists: 0

Edited By burnettaj

He played the Joker character very well. Its a shame that he has now passed on.

3 • 
Avatar image for deactivated-6793e8ba0e8bf
deactivated-6793e8ba0e8bf

5517

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 12

User Lists: 0

Even if he didn't play Joker again, it would be great to have Heath back.

3 • 
Avatar image for sikho
Sikho

54

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

He was a decent Joker. Not as good as Jared Leto in Suicide Squad, but watchable.

3 • 
Avatar image for nomadski69
nomadski69

3433

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 5

User Lists: 0

@sikho: *slow claps*

Upvote • 
Avatar image for immortaltech6
immortaltech6

220

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

@sikho: ROFL. Leto was but a pale imitation who tried to look tough but couldn't actually pull the character off because he doesn't have a quarter of Ledger's chops.

3 • 
Avatar image for quis89
Quis89

172

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

Edited By Quis89

@immortaltech6: removing the Heath comparisons, I think Leto was great for what he had to work with. I think suicide squad really underutilized him. I'd like to see him have an opportunity in that role with more of a presence.

4 • 
Avatar image for pacoman107
pacoman107

9

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 0

@quis89: HAHAHAHAH.....NO! seriously though, his method acting just killed the character.

2 • 
Avatar image for quis89
Quis89

172

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

@pacoman107: Eh. To each their own.

2 • 
Avatar image for Bread_or_Decide
Bread_or_Decide

29761

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 0

@sikho: Surely, you jest.

6 • 
Avatar image for PrpleTrtleBuBum
PrpleTrtleBuBum

3845

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 16

User Lists: 0

Considering that Dr. Crane appeared in all the movies this is no surprise. Joker definitely would have appeared at least for a minute. Would he have overthrown Bane and Talia is the question

Upvote • 
Avatar image for knifebeater
knifebeater

236

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

Edited By knifebeater

@PrpleTrtleBuBum: I think it definitely would've made more sense to have the Joker goofing around in that scene as the "judge" in the third movie instead of Scarecrow.

2 • 
Avatar image for cylor
Cylor

310

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

I thought this was widely known. Aaron Eckhart publicly stated that Ledger had been signed up for the next movie around the time of TDK's release.

4 • 
Avatar image for deviltaz35
DEVILTAZ35

8490

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

Why does it matter when he is dead what he planned to do or not do? His parents could say he planned to travel to the moon and who would know whether it was true or not.

4 • 
Avatar image for timthegem
timthegem

1239

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 0

@deviltaz35: It's like saying, "Don Rickles planned on having my babies".

Upvote • 
Avatar image for deviltaz35
DEVILTAZ35

8490

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

Edited By DEVILTAZ35

@timthegem: haha now that would be a story :)

Upvote • 
Avatar image for so_hai
so_hai

4385

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 89

User Lists: 0

I think he was too young to be the Joker, or Batman was too old.

2 • 
Avatar image for Mbrans25den
Mbrans25den

251

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 0

Heath is probably the greatest actor of our generation. Truly, a world tragedy he is gone.

3 • 
Avatar image for zerohournow
Zerohournow

705

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 5

Edited By Zerohournow

@Mbrans25den: Thats ridiculous. Playing the joker is not exactly a hard role. There is no subtlety, no range, nothing but just unlimited psychoness. You cant really over act these roles which is what makes them easy and they always get over rated. He was a good actor and he stupidly OD'd, sad but that is all there is too it, he isn't a hero for dying young.

Upvote • 
Avatar image for ibonedyourmom
ibonedyourmom

405

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 1

User Lists: 0

@zerohournow: Everyone knows when a celebrity dies they instantly become the most amazing human being ever.

6 • 
Avatar image for mpl911
mpl911

1226

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 7

User Lists: 0

Edited By mpl911

@zerohournow: I'm pretty sure he's being sarcastic. It's never a "world tragedy" when any actor dies, let alone one as minor as Heath Ledger.

Upvote • 
Avatar image for zerohournow
Zerohournow

705

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 2

User Lists: 5

@mpl911: ive lost the ability to tell any more

2 • 
Avatar image for deviltaz35
DEVILTAZ35

8490

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

@Mbrans25den: It was vastly exaggerated how good he was. It was however a really good distraction for Hollywood who was going through a massive upheaval at the time.

2 • 
Avatar image for banhammer
BanHammer

256

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

@Mbrans25den: daniel day lewis...denzel washington....johnny depp....lol heath ledger played the joker, big deal ....hes not even on the list for greatest actors

2 • 
Avatar image for deviltaz35
DEVILTAZ35

8490

Forum Posts

0

Wiki Points

0

Followers

Reviews: 0

User Lists: 5

Edited By DEVILTAZ35

@banhammer: lol he was a good actor just made out to be more than he ever deserved to be . He wasn't an Elvis Presley or Michael Jackson status in any regard or shouldn't be regarded in that honor list.

He was more famous for bonking a dude on screen before any of the Batman stuff went down.

2 • 
  • 73 results
  • 1
  • 2