Cesar Romero, Batman: The Movie (1966) / Batman (1966–1968)

Between 1966 and 1968, Romero played the Joker on 22 episodes of the supremely campy and rather brilliant Batman television series, starring Adam West as the Caped Crusader. Romero has the esteem of being the first actor to portray the Joker in live-action TV and film, reprising the character for the Batman movie, which was released theatrically in 1966.

Where to watch Batman: Sling TV

Where to watch Batman: The Movie: Amazon Prime Video (to rent)

Jack Nicholson, Batman (1989)

Jack Nicholson brought an old Hollywood sheen to the then-frowned-upon medium of comic book movies, practically stealing the show from Michael Keaton in Tim Burton’s retooled big-screen Batman outing. At the time, casting a “serious” Oscar-winning actor in such an arch franchise adaptation was practically unheard of, but in 2007 Nicholson told MTV (via PEOPLE) that he was won over by Burton, a kindred spirit.

“Tim Burton’s a genius. He had the right take on it. That’s why I did the movie,” Nicholson recalled. “I did the movie based on a single conversation with him. We both come from the cartoon world originally. We had similar ideas.”

Where to watch Batman: Max

Roger Stoneburner, Birds of Prey (2002–2003)

Roger Stoneburner makes a brief appearance as the Joker in the pilot of the WB’s Charmed-style Birds of Prey series, which starred Dina Meyer as Barbara Gordon (a.k.a. Batgirl) and Ashley Scott as Helena Kyle (a.k.a. the Huntress), the daughter of Batman and Catwoman. 

Stoneburner’s role is notable because he fires the bullet that paralyzes Barbara, but also because Mark Hamill later dubbed his lines. The Star Wars actor has voiced the Joker in a plethora of animated projects, but in Birds of Prey, he provides the dialogue while Stoneburner plays him in person.

Where to watch Birds of Prey: Tubi

Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight (2008)

Heath Ledger’s towering performance in Christopher Nolan’s seminal blockbuster, for which the actor won a posthumous Oscar, remains the most memorable and well-known portrayal of the gurning antagonist. Ledger died on Jan. 22, 2008, six months before the film’s release, at age 28 due to a fatal mix of prescription medication, his autopsy determined. 

Playing a “psychopathic, mass-murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy,” as Ledger described to The New York Times while shooting the film in 2007, undoubtedly impacted the actor, who said he “probably slept an average of two hours a night. I couldn’t stop thinking. My body was exhausted, and my mind was still going.” 

Where to watch The Dark Knight: Max

Cameron Monaghan, Gotham (2014–2019)

Okay, this inclusion may be a technicality, but here we are. Cameron Monaghan appeared in 20 episodes of Gotham as twin brothers Jerome and Jeremiah, who just wanted to watch the world burn (sound familiar?). Although he was never explicitly called the Joker, Gotham ends with Jeremiah possibly going on to become the Clown Prince of Crime, or perhaps passing the baton of evil to another. It’s a twist that’s later employed similarly at the end of Joker: Folie à Deux.

Where to watch Gotham: Tubi

Jared Leto, Suicide Squad (2016)

Jared Leto made headlines for all the wrong reasons for his take on the Joker, which was much more akin to Shia LaBeouf in Megalopolis than anything Ledger ever did. No one loved Leto’s Hot Topic grill and tats, and those on set were less enthused about his method-acting antics. Seriously, who sends a live rat to Margot Robbie? (Not to mention delivering a dead pig to rehearsal.)

After David Ayer’s Suicide Squad underperformed, any chance of Leto getting his own stand-alone film was decimated. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Leto was reportedly furious when Phoenix was greenlit to wear the Clown Prince’s crown just a few years later.

Where to watch Suicide Squad: Max

Nathan Dashwood, Batwoman (2019–2022)

Much like Roger Stoneburner, Nathan Dashwood plays a pivotal role in the series without actually appearing much on screen. In Batwoman’s mythos, his faceless Joker is pictured in a flashback sequence. He terrorizes and manipulates Marquis Jet (Nick Creegan), the half-brother of the eponymous crime fighter (Javicia Leslie’s Ryan). The Joker eventually drives Marquis to adopt his own villainous alter ego, with which he torments his sister.

Where to watch Batwoman: Tubi

Joaquin Phoenix, Joker (2019) / Joker: Folie à Deux (2024)

Joaquin Phoenix became the second actor to win an Oscar for playing the Joker when he concocted a transformative performance as Arthur Fleck. Todd Phillips’ bleak psychological thriller posited an origin story for the infamous villain that was vastly different from any Joker-related property up to that point.

Phillips tried but failed to achieve a different level of subversion with Folie à Deux, a misguided jukebox musical courtroom drama. While neither genre is effectively rendered, and the movie seems unlikely to gain similar awards traction, the jury is out on whether this sequel will rupture Phoenix’s rule over the Joker mantle, which he shares with Ledger.

Where to watch Joker: Max

Barry Keoghan, The Batman (2022)

Barry Keoghan appears for a brief minute at the end of Matt Reeves’s 2022 film. His Joker turns up at Arkham State Hospital, where he’s being kept in a cell next to the Riddler (Paul Dano). Though the Joker and Batman’s history in Reeves’ universe is still unclear, we see the Clown Prince cajole the Riddler into allying against the masked vigilante.

Keoghan is barely pictured on-screen, but his macabre laughter and glimpses of his scarred face do all of the talking. His participation in the film was successfully kept a secret up until the release, at which point fans immediately began speculating as to how Keoghan’s Joker (who’s officially credited as “Unseen Arkham Prisoner”) would potentially factor into the sequel.

Where to watch The Batman: Max

Connor Storrie, Joker: Folie à Deux (2024)

After Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix) confesses to his crimes and is incarcerated at Arkham State Hospital, Connor Storrie’s young inmate offers to tell Arthur a joke. The punchline is indeed a killer: he stabs Arthur several times, presumably killing him. As the camera dollies in on Arthur taking his final feeble breaths, we see — out of focus, in the background — the assailant bellow a sinister laugh and carve a jagged smile onto his own face.

Unquestionably the most interesting and effective part of Folie à Deux, the ending predictably sent fans into a flurry of speculation about whether or not Storrie’s character is actually the real Joker, who was inspired by Arthur Fleck’s chaos. Will future DC properties provide confirmation? Only time will tell.

Where to watch Joker: Folie à Deux: In theaters