In a new Hollywood Reporter/Morning Consult poll, Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker outranks Jared Leto’s portrayal by a wide margin.
When the late Heath Ledger was officially cast as the Joker in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight, a number of fans were vocally displeased with the choice and the filmmaker’s new take on the classic Batman villain. Of course, Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker is now widely regarded as the best live-action portrayal of the iconic character and garnered numerous awards, including a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
Conversely, the first official reveal of Jared Leto’s Joker in David Ayer’s The Suicide Squad was not well-received and the actor’s performance as the Clown Prince of Crime was also unfavorably received by many. Now, the results of a new poll conducted among 2,201 adults between June 6 and 9 reveals feelings towards Heath Ledger and Jared Leto’s respective portrayals of the Joker remain unchanged after all these years.
Among those surveyed, 60% chose the “very favorable” option when asked to give their impression of Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker in The Dark Knight, just slightly ahead of the 58% earned by Jack Nicholson’s take on the character. However, Jack Nicholson’s Joker outranks Heath Ledger’s version in terms of net favorability with +74 to the latter’s +72 score.
On the other hand, only 18% of those surveyed had a “very favorable” impression of Jared Leto’s Joker, far behind Heath Ledger and Jack Nicholson’ respective performances. In terms of net favorability, Jared Leto’s Joker only managed to garner a +18 score.
Now, the torch has been passed from Heath Ledger and Jared Leto to Joaquin Phoenix, who will offer fans another new take on the Clown Prince of Crime in Todd Phillips’ Joker.
“Joker” centers around the iconic arch nemesis and is an original, standalone story not seen before on the big screen. Phillips’ exploration of Arthur Fleck (Phoenix), a man disregarded by society, is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.
Directed by Todd Phillips from a script he co-wrote with Scott Silver, Joker stars Joaquin Phoenix, Zazie Beetz, Bill Camp, Frances Conroy, Brett Cullen, Glenn Fleshler, Douglas Hodge, Marc Maron, Josh Pais, and Shea Whigham.
Joker will be released in theaters on October 4, 2019.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
