The Batman movie Joaquin Phoenix turned down a decade before ‘Joker’
Since he was a child, Joaquin Phoenix has performed in front of cameras, whether in commercials or blockbuster films. The actor might not have initially been the most well-known actor in his family, with his brother, River, earning lots of acclaim during the late 1980s and early ‘90s. Yet, following his older sibling’s death, Phoenix took a few years before seriously pursuing acting, making a name for himself in the mid-90s.
By the early 2000s, Phoenix was a well-known figure in the industry, starring in Ridley Scott’s Gladiator to significant acclaim. He then appeared in movies like Signs and Walk the Line, with the latter earning him his second Oscar nomination after his first for Gladiator. Phoenix was quickly becoming one of the most revered stars of his generation, but during this time, he missed out on playing a character he would eventually play later in his career.
The 2010s were an excellent decade for Phoenix, who starred in films like The Master, Her, Inherent Vice, and You Were Never Really Here. In 2019, he then took on the role of the titular character in Joker, directed by Todd Phillips. The movie was a huge success, earning the actor an Academy Award. Based on the antagonist from DC Comics, the Joker has been played by various actors over the years, most notably in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy by the late Heath Ledger.
Phoenix had big boots to fill when taking on the role, knowing that he would receive comparisons to Ledger’s interpretation of the character, which also won him an Oscar. Yet, Phoenix once revealed that he spoke to Nolan about the role of the Joker back in the 2000s, suggesting that there was a chance he could’ve played the part that instead went to Ledger.
On the podcast Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin, Phoenix shared, “I remember I talked to Chris Nolan about The Dark Knight and that didn’t happen for whatever reason.” The actor was at a similar point in his career to Ledger during this time, and both were actors rapidly gaining success. Yet, Phoenix admits that he “wasn’t ready then”.
He continued: “That’s one of those things where it’s like, ‘What is in me that’s not doing this?’ And it’s not about me. There’s something else. There’s another person who is going to do something. I can’t imagine what it would be if we didn’t have Heath Ledger’s performance in that film, right?”
Ledger’s performance was masterful, and he rightly earned himself high praise and various accolades, although he sadly never got to see this response. He died in January 2008, several months before The Dark Knight was released. Phoenix greatly admired Ledger’s performance and took inspiration from the late actor, whom he called one of his favourites when getting into character as the Joker.
Phoenix has since played the character in the musical sequel, Joker: Folie à Deux, although the movie has unfortunately fared incredibly badly. Still, Phoenix’s performance as the Joker in the first movie cannot be faulted, and it seems like he waited until the right time to play the iconic character.
