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Mark Hamill done voicing Joker

Actor bids farewell to iconic animated role as the Batman's nemesis and clown prince of crime as Arkham City launches into stores.

252 Comments

The actor who played Luke Skywalker is stepping away from a second iconic role. On his verified Twitter account yesterday, Mark Hamill said goodbye to his recurring role as the villainous Joker after his turn as the clown prince of crime in the just-released Batman: Arkham City.

But what we'll mostly remember is the laughter. The awful, chilling laughter.
But what we'll mostly remember is the laughter. The awful, chilling laughter.

"Hello/Goodbye Joker," Hamill said. "I've enjoyed every minute behind the wheel of the Crown Prince's crazy car--I'm going to miss him more than I can say!!"

This is not the first time Hamill has indicated that he was done with the role. When asked at last year's San Diego Comic-Con about reports that Arkham City would be his final performance as the Joker, Hamill mused, "I keep saying that…" He added that he hadn't wanted to do a sequel after the original Arkham because he takes the character seriously and wanted to go out on a high note. However, he also noted that in a number of ways, the final decision on the matter wasn't actually up to him.

While Hamill has been trying to step away from the Joker role, he has allowed for the possibility of a return. In July, he posted on Twitter, "If I do 1 last performance as The Joker, hope it's The Killing Joke!!!" The Killing Joke was a Batman story written by Alan Moore (The Watchmen, V for Vendetta) in which the Joker shoots and paralyzes Barbara Gordon.

For more on Hamill's feasibly final performance as the Joker, check out GameSpot's review of Arkham City.

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Avatar image for epic542
epic542

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Well, with this prequel, they might as well look towards John Di Maggio, or maybe the guy who played Joker in Lego Batman 2.

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Rafa16

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All I have to say is (borrowing James Earl Jones voice): NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!

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Tiltnspill

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@hojo80 Hey jerk, you realize some people haven't finished the game yet? D-bag

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MVan86

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What a shame if it's true, Hamil is THE man we should all think of as playing the role of The Joker - he is the only one who has shown off the full range of emotions Joker has (from unapologetic insane delight at his own mayhem to disquieting levels of evil and menace).

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loopy_101

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I'm sure a healthy paycheck boost will bring him back, he deserves one after all.

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conkerton

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I really hope he reconsiders this if they make one last Batman game.... or just a Joker game.

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TheoAlmighty

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Stop playing around, Mr Hamill... We'll see you in the next Batman game :)

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JOKER677

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Great voice acting though for the Batman games by all characters, I don't see them finding a better replacement.

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mattg90520

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If he wants to go out on a high note, he should have stopped at Arkham Asylum since it seems to focus on the Joker more than Arkham city (though I havent played the sequel yet). If he wants to go out with a bang, he needs to voice the Joker in the inevitable next, hopefully last Arkham game in this current series.

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thepyrethatburn

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So many roles that I remember him for: Luke Skywalker Christopher Blair (Wing Commander) The Joker Good memories all.

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Darth_Nater307

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As of now, I think I'll remember him more for voicing the Joker than playing Luke Skywalker.

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Frost259

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@Archontic He was going to be done after Arkham Asylum cause he didn't think that performance of the Joker could be topped. However he was talked into Arkham City and it topped it for sure. So now he says he's done, unless they do the Killing Joke the only thing he thinks can do better.

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Avatar image for Dante200X
Dante200X

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Best Joker voice ever......nobody else is as good as him nor will they ever be.

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CreatureRising

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He was great as the Joker.

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Ripper_TV

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Sounds like he's just tired of the role.

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blackace

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@vaejas @blackace Carrie Fisher is primarily a screenwriter these days. *************************************** Yeah, it looks like her acting days are just about over. She was in "Fanboys" movie though.

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redness19

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Of all the Joker's, Mark Hamil is the best. It's a shame he's done with the character but atleast it'll allow villians like Two Face to get more screen time.

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jedinortd_basic

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one of the best jokers!

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Nzilla

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that's a shame. he was a great joker.

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lotrtrunks

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@Archtonic that would only make sense if Arkham City didnt have Joker voiced by him.

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Archontic

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I think he actually announced this around the time Arkham Asylum was released. Really, really old news.

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Witchsight

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To star in Star Wars remakes fulltime?

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vaejas

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@blackace Carrie Fisher is primarily a screenwriter these days.

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blackace

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At least he's found other jobs away from Star Wars. That's always a good thing. Can't say the same for Carrie Fisher. She's like the cameo queen.

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Deadly_Nemesis

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The character will Suffer for it. At least when it calls for a vocal performance. I mean that is the Jokers' voice. Whenever I read a Batman comic it's always Marks voice I hear. No other voice has fit the character so perfectly. As far as I am concerned that is his voice.

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karloss01

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@ Jordo_d Killing Joke is a graphic novel... << LINK REMOVED >>:_The_Killing_Joke

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karloss01

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old news other then the twitter message. he announced it quite a while back.

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Avatar image for SDBusDriver1979
SDBusDriver1979

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Hamill's performance in Star Wars was just practice for his role as the Joker. There is no one who will be able to top his VA performance on Joker.

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cdog21

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At least they gave him the perfect outing with Arkham City.

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Shadow_Fire41

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'cries' also he was Master Eraqus in Birth By Sleep. well, we still got that one guy from The Batman who sounds alot like him.

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shani_boy101

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Mark Hamill is an extraordinary voice actor, I'll be looking forward to what he does next. Fun fact: He voice Fire Lord Sozin in Avatar: The Last Airbender :D

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XboxGuy1537

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It's a shame. His voice acting talents are phenomenal.

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36CHAMBERS1

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in the revised blu-ray version of the star wars darth vader.noooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

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AvatarMan96

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Man, this sucks :(

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MOwens9512

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Would be a shame not to have him do the Joker anymore. I can't think of anybody (be it live action or voice work wise) who can match his performance. Yes, I loved Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger as the Joker on screen, but Mark Hamill's Joker to me matches the character's iconic status in the way Kevin Conroy's Batman does. Hell, I was slightly dissappointed not to hear Arleen Sorkin doing Harley Quinn anymore, so I can't imagine how I'd feel not hearing Mark Hamill as the Joker again. Still, I can understand the need to move on and try new things. I just hope that before he truly does he gets his chance at the Killing Joke. Would love to see that happen.

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Avatar image for Serious
Serious

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I understand Mark wanting the chance to play the Joker in "The Killing Joke" it was a great piece of writing and gave the Joker a truly sad origin. As for Batgirl. Well then went and healed her so she's swing from buildings again. I think she was much better as Oracle than Batgirl. Before Oracle Batman had to go back to the batcave to research facts or analyze clues. Now he downloads or hands it to Oracle while he stays on the street. I wonder if someone else will pick up the Oracle mantle.

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S_Pac_316

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That's too bad...he was the best voice for The Joker.

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Avatar image for starduke
starduke

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Well, he was a great Joker. He will be missed.

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Avatar image for Jordo_d
Jordo_d

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"If I do 1 last performance as The Joker, hope it's The Killing Joke!!!" The Killing Joke as in....one last performance where the Joker kills Batman? Cuz the Gordon thing is already done

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Dr_Jackal

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He will be greatly missed as the voice of the Joker for almost the past two decades. Would've loved to hear him as the Joker from the Killing Joke.

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Avatar image for reavin81
reavin81

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wow dam he is so good at it, i wonder who will do it next

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_Silent_Jay_

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@Rohan233: Uh, no. He said numerous times he's done doing the Joker, period. He feels like he's done all he can with the character, Killing Joke aside, and decided to retire the voice before it started to become Luke Skywalker all over again.

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Rohan233

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PEOPLE ARE GETTING THIS WRONG!, HE SAID HE WON'T DO THE VOICE FOR THE GAMES ANYMORE!, BUT HE REASSURED THAT HE WAS GOING KEEP DOING THE VOICE FOR ANIMATED FILMS etc.

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Avatar image for MrHatnClogs
MrHatnClogs

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Can't spell Mark Hamill without Arkham!

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Avatar image for hadoken
hadoken

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@Gothic_symphony np you human

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Gothic_symphony

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@hadoken Thanks for the spelling class, you dick of a kind.

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hunter8man

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Nooooo! I hate to hear this. If they bring someone in to replace Hamill, there had better be no noticeable differences in the voices. Hamill's was PERFECT.

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Avatar image for Khasym
Khasym

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@heroesfan261 Because Hamill's Joker got kneecapped early in the running due to the non-violence issues in the first Batman the animated series. I got a look at the way The Joker done by Hamill was supposed to be after viewing a snippet from the uncut Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker, and while I love what I saw, I knew that's not the Joker that made it into the TV series. To be clear, this is NOT saying anything against Hamill's talent. I think that even with those restrictions, I'll still remember his Joker before Ledger. But the sad truth is, the animated Joker was hit lame for a long period of time before he really got the chance to push into the bloody zone :-) So, the one people are more likely to reference as the gruesome Joker is gonna be Ledger first, because the animated series didn't want to get really violent.

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HonorOfGod

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Might as well let batman finish the Joker.. let the Joker leave with a BIG BANG! I am sure he would love that.

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