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The Joker is Batman’s most iconic villain, and any actor stepping into the role faces the weight of decades of comics history and incredible performances from their predecessors. Cesar Romero’s cackling clown was perfect for the silly 1966 Batman show, but Jack Nicholson made Joker a terrifying gangster in Tim Burton’s 1989 Batman film. Mark Hamill’s maniacal laughter and sinister charm became the defining version of Joker for the generation who grew up on Batman: The Animated Series, while Heath Ledger disappeared into the role as portrayed the villain as a twisted avatar of chaos. Now, we have a new interpretation of the Clown Prince of Crime, and it’s one of the most haunting yet.
House of the Dragon star Matthew Needham is the latest to take on the role in Batman: Caped Crusader season 2, and he’s definitely feeling the pressure.
Warning: Spoilers ahead for Batman: Caped Crusader season 2.
“People adore this character, as they should,” Needham tells Polygon. “I didn’t want people to think we were taking him for granted or being silly or stupid with him. I really hoped that people would see that everything we were doing was with great respect. But it was a real big swing, and it’s not what people expect when it comes to the Joker.”
Prime Video’s spiritual successor to Batman: The Animated Series has reinvented many members of Batman’s rogue’s gallery, including the Penguin, Mad Hatter, and the Riddler. The new spin on Joker is far calmer and more calculating than usual, but no less terrifying. He spends most of season 2 lurking in the background, quietly observing Batman and manipulating Gotham’s underworld. When he finally steps out of the shadows and begins terrorizing Gotham with chemical weapons, he proves himself to be both a mental and physical match for the Dark Knight. Rather than maniacal, this Joker always seems fully in control as he pushes Batman to his limits and tries to bring out his darkest and most violent tendencies.
Polygon had the chance to ask Needham a few questions about his approach to the character and his relationship with the Dark Knight. Check out his answers below.
1
Is the Joker from Europe?
The most surprising thing about Needham’s version of the Joker is his voice. The villain speaks with a German-inflected accent and a very flat affect. Those ideas came straight from the audition materials, which specified that the Joker should be “European and humorless.”
“It was their creation, and I just gave my version of it,” Needham tells Polygon. “I have ideas where he’s from, but I think part of the power of the Joker is that his origins are unknown. Leaving it purposely vague is more impactful than locating it down to one specific origin.”
There is no shortage of previous portrayals of the Joker or villainous Europeans that Needham could have drawn on, but his primary inspiration was Tony Beckley’s performance in Fred Walton’s 1979 thriller When a Stranger Calls.
“It’s about this woman who receives really threatening phone calls from this really quiet, softly spoken stranger,” Needham says. “That always stuck with me — how scary he was, and how unsettling and threatening a quiet voice can be, rather than a loud one.”
2
What does Joker want from Batman?
Joker and Batman are often portrayed as more interconnected than other heroes and villains. The Joker commits crimes specifically to get Batman’s attention, often trying to corrupt him or his allies. Caped Crusader leans into that dynamic, with Joker referring to Batman as “brother.”
“These two people complement each other in very, very dark ways,” Needham says. “Our producers were saying that they’re two broken mirrors, and one’s trying to fix himself and the other isn’t. Joker’s trying to get Batman to reveal himself, to evolve to his final form. The Joker thinks of himself as an evolved human, a supreme being trying to get another supreme being to evolve.”
Needham always comes up with a backstory for his characters. He wasn’t willing to reveal the details in an interview, but he says that when he spoke with Caped Crusader executive producer and screenwriter Geoffrey Thorne at San Diego Comic-Con, he discovered they had the same ideas about Joker’s origins.
“Batman and the Joker are more similar than you think,” he says.
3
Would he like to see Harley Quinn and Joker work together?
Harley Quinn was originally introduced in a 1992 episode of Batman: The Animated Series as Joker’s partner in crime, but Caped Crusader divorced the two characters. Dr. Harleen Quinzel (Jamie Chung) is a psychiatrist who dresses in costume to punish Gotham’s elite, and she teamed up with Batman in season 2 to stop Scarecrow.
“Harley Quinn was originally brought in as almost a plus one of Joker, but it’s really clear that the character is strong enough and vibrant enough to stand on her own, and she can occupy her own universe,” Needham says. “She doesn’t need to be paired with a Joker. I would only love it selfishly, because it would be great to spend time with such a brilliant character.”
4
Who’s worse: Larys Strong or The Joker?
Needham’s breakout role was the perpetually scheming Master of Whisperers Larys Strong in House of the Dragon, and he said he’s waiting “with bated breath” to see the scripts for the HBO show’s fourth and final season, which is expected to begin production next year. While Larys has been responsible for numerous deaths, including those of his own father and older brother, Needham says Joker is in an entirely different league of evil.
“I think of Larys as like a wounded animal in the wild, doing everything he can to not get eaten by the bigger animals,” Needham said. “He tortures, he manipulates, and he kills, but that’s just the game, right? Them’s the rules. Joker’s just the devil, basically. Larys is a product of his environment, and the Joker is the environment. He’s this force of nature. To me, they’re two very different characters.”
Batman: Caped Crusader is streaming now on Prime Video.
