It was not a linear road for Barry Keoghan to become Joker in The Batman. Initially, the Eternals actor auditioned for Riddler, which was online for years with little viewership. He was in the running for becoming the main villain, as Jonah Hill was in the running too. When the role went to Paul Dano, it seemed like he wouldn’t be in a Batman movie. In an interview with GQ, he revealed what happened to land him the role of the iconic villain.
After that Riddler audition, there was silence for fourth months. When in New York having dinner with a friend, his agent called. Barry Keoghan was told by his agent that “The Batman wants you to play Joker – but you cannot tell anyone.” In classic Hollywood fashion, he did not tell anyone until people got that surprising moment when he appeared for a few minutes.
Barry Keoghan opened up about being Joker in The Batman
The scene barely shows Barry Keoghan as Joker, although there was a deleted scene between him and Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader that gave a closer look at the prosthetics and makeup that put him into the shoes of the clown. Although it was brief, he did have some say for the character, particularly when it came to keeping his natural eyes revealed.
“I wanted some sort of human in there behind the makeup. I want people to relate to him… [to know] this façade he puts on.”
Not much is known about what’s next for the Dark Knight since Gotham was flooded by the Riddler. We know that Pattinson, Andy Serkis, and Zoë Kravitz are signed on for the sequel. Barry Keoghan has not gotten word that he will return as Joker in the next film. He is all up, “as soon as that call comes,” then he will be there.
