Heath Ledger’s take on The Joker in 2008’s The Dark Knight is unforgettable. When he passed away not long after the movie shoot wrapped up, it was all the more tragic – and his performance in the role has since become the standard others are measured by.
Even now in 2021, with multiple versions of Joker since Ledger’s, and even a two-Batman universe in the works, Christopher Nolan’s trilogy, and Ledger’s Joker, are still among fan’s most favorite interpretations.
It was no accident, as it turned out. Ledger was a dedicated actor who went the extra mile and then some to prepare for the role. Here’s a look at some of the facts that have fallen by the wayside since 2008.
10 Heath Originally Auditioned For The Part Of Bruce Wayne/Batman
Apparently, Heath was actually the one of the first actors under consideration for the role of Bruce Wayne/Batman in the Christopher Nolan trilogy. However, according to reports, both Ledger and Nolan agreed that he wasn't really the right fit for the role. Still, he apparently stuck in the director's mind, and later on, after Christian Bale got the nod for Batman, Ledger's name came back up for The Joker. As the majority of fans and critics would agree, the casting ended up a great choice on both counts.
9 He Set Records – Including With His Oscar Win
When he took the role, Heath Ledger was the youngest actor to ever portray the Joker. Jack Nicholson is an acting legend, and he gave Joker in Tim Burton’s Batman what many felt was the ideal combination of comedic madness and menace. In fact, many critics and DC fans felt Ledger had been miscast – that is, until the movie was released. When Ledger won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 2009, he was the first actor to win for a role in a superhero movie.
8 He Prepared For The Role With 43 Days Of Isolation
It’s ironic, in hindsight from 2021, to think that Ledger locked himself up in a cheap motel room for 43 days to prepare for the Joker’s insane, fantasy-driven worldview – one that is also completely isolated from the real world. He wanted to feel the kind of dissociative state, out of touch with reality, that Joker lives in full-time. So realistic was his process, that according to reports his personal relationships suffered from the experience.
7 His Take On Joker Was Inspired By ‘A Clockwork Orange’
A Clockwork Orange sparked controversy, and became part of movie history, on its release in 1971. The movie poster, with its image of Malcom McDowell’s Alex De Large with face paint and a stylized, clownish outfit, is by now iconic.
At the time, it was shocking because no one had portrayed that kind of character in mainstream film. Director Christopher Nolan gave him the movie as a reference, and it seems natural that Ledger took his inspiration for Joker’s sinister clown persona from the character of De Large.
6 He Kept A Joker Diary
Ledger’s Joker is a memorable villain because he took such care in studying and interpreting the role. During his preparations for the shoot, Ledger kept a daily journal. He wrote in it as if he was Joker, and wrote pages and pages of insane ramblings. The writings talked about things he thought Joker would be interested in, like blind babies, and people who’d suffered brain damage. Immersing himself in the persona is how he made his Joker not only striking, but somehow realistic too.
5 He Wanted Batman’s Interrogation To Be Realistic
According to an interview with Christian Bale, during the interrogation scene, the beating Batman lays on Joker was, to a certain extent real. “As you see in the movie, Batman starts beating the Joker and realizes that this is not your ordinary foe. Because the more I beat him the more he enjoys it,” he said. “He was kinda egging me on. I was saying, ‘You know what, I really don’t need to actually hit you. It’s going to look just as good if I don’t.’ And he’s going, ‘Go on. Go on. Go on….’”
4 Heath Designed His Own Make-up
Ledger’s sense of realism made him take on the task of designing Joker’s signature make-up. He reportedly wanted it to look realistic – the way a man would look is he’d bought cheap make-up from a drugstore he was using for effect.
And, add that the man is a psychopath. After the directors approved his look, the make-up team learned how to recreate it. That way, a team of experts could make sure he looked exactly the same for each shot over the production.
3 His Scars Were His Idea And They’re Called A ‘Glasgow Smile’
As DC Comics lovers know, the source design for the Joker from the comics does change over the years, but none of them sport the scars that really typify Ledger’s take on the iconic character. Ledge reportedly came up with the idea in order to make his Joker truly unique. The scars on either side of the mouth actually go by a specific name – the “Glasgow smile”. It’s how gangs in the Scottish city would scar their enemies for life, and as it happens, creates a distinctly horrifying Joker look.
2 The Bank Robbery Mask Is An Easter Egg
Before even Jack Nicholson, there was Cesar Romero, who gave his Joker just the right amount of comedic zaniness required for the seminal Batman TV series that ran three seasons from 1966 to 1968. In Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight, Ledger’s Joker is seen wearing a mask during the bank robbery scene. It’s very similar to a mask worn by Cesar Romero’s Joker in a 1966 episode titled "The Joker is Wild". The overall look is a bit different, but the mask itself is almost a duplicate.
1 He Scared Michael Caine Into Forgetting His Lines
In an interview, veteran actor Michael Caine, who played Alfred in the Dark Knight trilogy, talked about working with Ledger – and his shock on seeing him the first time in his make-up. It was a scene where he comes up in an elevator, as Caine described it. “So on the first rehearsal, I've never seen him. He has like seven dwarfs with him, like Snow White, only it's not like that. When the bloody door opened on that lift, he came tearing out. I forgot every line. Terrifying.”