Before Todd Philips‘ Oscar-winning “Joker” turned the Crown Prince of Crime into a down-on-his-luck Newyorker loner, the villain’s mysterious origin was part of what made him intriguing. “The Dark Knight” gave us one of the best Joker portrayals ever without the need to say where he came from. Now, co-writer David S. Goyer revealed that there was an initial push to give Joker an origin story in the film.
During a Q&A Comic-Con@Home panel, Goyer discussed the making of the film “I do remember when we were talking about, ‘Well, what if the Joker doesn’t really have an origin story?” Goyer said. “Even after the success of ‘Batman Begins‘, that was considered a very controversial thing, and we got a lot of push-back. People were worried.”
You can sort of see where the executives were coming from. The last time Joker appeared in a live-action Batman movie was in Tim Burton‘s 1989 “Batman” which gave Joker a very personal connection to Bruce Wayne, and also a first and last name. Burton’s take on the Caped Crusader proved to be incredibly successful and influential, so why try something different? Sure, “Batman Begins” already proved you could do different things with comicbook characters and stories, but there was no way it could work twice, right?
Joker hasn’t really had a definitive origin story in the comicbooks. Throughout the decades, different writers coming up with their little version of the truth. Part of what makes the character resonate after so many decades is the chaotic nature of his origin, so it’s a relief that Goyer and Christopher Nolan stuck to their guts on their take on Joker.