DC Studios has officially cast its first-ever Joker, and his debut is imminent. The Joker is not only Batman's archnemesis and a constant threat to all of Gotham, but also one of the most adapted villains in history. The legendary laugher has been played by greats like César Romero, Jack Nicholson, Heath Ledger, Joaquin Phoenix, and Mark Hamill over the decades. Four years after DC Studios formed under co-CEOs James Gunn and Peter Safran, fans are still waiting on a version of the Joker from either the DCU or any Elseworlds franchises.
DC Studios and the team behind Batman: Caped Crusader Season 2 confirmed at San Diego Comic-Con that Joker will be voiced in the coming episodes by House of the Dragon star Matthew Needham. As Caped Crusader Season 2 is officially produced by the James Gunn-led DC Studios, unlike Season 1, it officially marks the recently formed studio's first-ever solo Batman project, and with it, Needham becomes the renovated blue brand's first Joker.
Amazon Prime Video's Caped Crusader teased the Joker in Season 1's post-credits scene, as the clowny villain's obscured face uttered "perfect" after successfully testing his lethal laughing gas. Showrunner James Tucker later hyped up Caped Crusader Season 2's "very different" Joker, who fans now know will be played by the Westerosi veteran when the series returns on Friday, July 31.
Needham's Joker will appear opposite Hamish Linklater's Batman in Season 2, along with seven other major Batman villains who are confirmed to feature. The noir detective series acts as a spiritual successor to Batman: The Animated Series, in which the late Kevin Conroy and Star Wars icon Mark Hamill played the rivals.
While 2023's Amazon Prime Video original Merry Little Batman introduced a new Joker, played by It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia actor David Hornsby, for the family-friendly affair, the project hailed from Warner Bros. Animation and DC Entertainment, not the Gunn-fronted DC Studios.
There is a high chance that Barry Keoghan will reprise his Clown Prince of Crime in 2028's The Batman: Part 2, which is now in production. However, the Saltburn actor had already been cast by director Matt Reeves for a cameo in the 2022 blockbuster, meaning this isn't a new DC Studios casting.
Combining both of those exceptions, 2024's Joker: Folie à Deux featured an existing take on the DC supervillain, Joaquin Phoenix's Arthur Fleck, and was produced through Warner Bros. Pictures by director Todd Phillips. There's no doubt that DC Studios was happy to distance itself from the musical Joker 2 after it flopped at the box office and received mixed to poor reviews.
What Does DC Studios Have Planned for the Joker?
Matthew Needham may be DC Studios' first Joker, but there's no doubt that he will be far from the last to emerge in the coming years. The studio just recently announced Joker: Laugh Riot as an Elseworlds anime series in which Batman has been murdered, and the villain goes on a "ruthless crusade" to find his killer.
But in terms of when fans will see a live-action Joker again, that remains a mystery for now, especially as Joker 3 is out of the question. Logically, the next opportunity comes via The Batman: Part 2, and some reports have claimed that Barry Keoghan will return as his "pre-Joker Joker" in the February 2028 blockbuster.
While Reeves is focusing on less-explored Batman villains in Part 2, it's easy to imagine him revisiting Arkham Asylum for another Joker cameo. If Keoghan's Joker has yet to truly become the Clown Prince of Crime and develop his storied history with the Dark Knight, perhaps the Gotham Crime Saga is all building up to a clash between the archrivals in The Batman: Part 3.
Of course, the question on many fans' minds is when James Gunn will introduce the DCU's Joker, and, sadly, the answer is probably not anytime soon. The Brave and the Bold has faced repeated setbacks and, even when the DCU's Batman arrives, it's tough to imagine the Joker having anything to do with his first movie.
That said, the DCU's Batman mythos has been the subject of many strange decisions, with Clayface landing this October and a Deathstroke/Bane team-up reportedly being a priority, all before The Brave and the Bold releases. It's not out of the question that the DCU has a Joker before a Batman, especially if Weapons director Zach Cregger lands his dream superhero project.
