Even before cinematic universes became commonplace, there were a number of Batman movies being produced. The latest of these is Matt Reeves’ The Batman, which is set outside of the main DCEU. The gritty blockbuster also teased the entrance of a new Clown Prince of Crime. Now Barry Keoghan is sharing fan art of his Joker, so bring on the sequel.
The Batman saw Robert Pattinson’s title character interact with a trio of iconic DC villains in Riddler, Catwoman, and Penguin. But fans were shocked to see Joker have a brief role at the end of the movie, teasing that Matt Reeves has big plans for the character. Barry Keoghan recently shared some fan of his version of the Joker on Twitter, check it out below:
Joker 🤡 pic.twitter.com/lD63Rn3lqNMarch 30, 2022
I mean, how cool is that? While we were only treated to glimpses of Barry Keoghan’s Joker throughout The Batman’s theatrical cut, fans were eventually treated to more footage thanks to a deleted scene in which he appeared opposite Robert Pattinson. Although the fan art is perhaps the clearest image we’ve seen of Keoghan’s take on the villain.
The piece of fan art that Barry Keoghan shared on social media comes to us from artist Juliano Batista. He’s definitely got an interest in DC lore, and has done a few takes on iconography from The Batman. And the work is impressive enough that even the Eternals actor decided to share it on Twitter.
Prior to the release of The Batman, there were a number of fan theories about if/when The Joker might be added to the burgeoning franchise. While some fans hoped for a crossover with Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck, others thought Willem Dafoe would make a great Mr. J. But in the end Matt Reeves already had cast and shot footage for his version of the villain, with Barry Keoghan being the lucky actor inheriting the role.
While Joker only appeared during a brief scene with Riddler at the end of The Batman’s theatrical cut, Warner Bros. went on to release a deleted sequence that could have been shown earlier in the movie’s runtime. You can see that scene below, which adds much more context to the villain’s later scene.
It remains to be seen where Matt Reeves will take this new version of Joker in a future Batman project. The Planet of the Apes filmmaker clearly has a vision for the villain, as well as his take on Gotham City. While fans are still waiting for a sequel to The Batman to be announced by Warner Bros., Reeves is moving forward with a spinoff series on HBO Max.
The Batman is still in theaters now, albeit without that Joker deleted scene. Be sure to check out the 2022 movie release dates to plan your next movie experience.
