Not Heath Ledger, this actor was the first choice to play Joker in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight
Heath Ledger's portrayal of Joker in The Dark Knight is hailed as one of the greatest performances in the history of cinema. However, did you know the late actor was not the first choice to play the iconic DC villain? Yes, you read that right! Ledger left an incredible legacy behind with his impressive Joker performance, but Christopher Nolan's first preference for the part was Joaquin Phoenix. Scroll ahead to know more.
Joaquin Phoenix was the first choice to play Joker in The Dark Knight
Joaquin Phoenix in an interview with?Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin revealed that he had to decline the offer to play the iconic role despite Christopher Nolan's insistence, and he had a good reason for it.
"I remember I talked to Chris Nolan about The Dark Knight and that didn¡¯t happen for whatever reason. I wasn¡¯t ready then. 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?" Joaquin said.
"I don¡¯t know whether Christopher Nolan was coming to me saying, ¡®You¡¯re the person.¡¯ I can¡¯t remember the context of how we met, but I know we met. My feeling was I shouldn¡¯t do this, but maybe he also was like, ¡®He¡¯s not the guy,'" he added.
Joaquin Phoenix as and in 'Joker'
When they say what's meant for you will always find a way, they talk about Joaquin Phoenix's destiny to play Joker. A decade later, Phoenix made waves with his titular role in Joker (2019) which earned him his first Oscar. He recently returned for the second part, Joker: Folie ¨¤ Deux, which did not receive the same critical acclaim, but found its audience despite a below-average box office performance.
