The Batmanproved to be worth of critical acclaim back in 2022. People have praised Robert Pattinson’s iteration of the caped crusader and the well-craftednew version of GothamMatt Reeves has created. Batman’s vigilantism in the city is still in its infancy, with the story set in year 2 or 3 of Batman’s war on crime. ThisBatversehas a lot of things going on since Bruce Wayne took it upon himself to unravel the truth behind organized crime in Gotham and his parent’s murder.
Update July 03, 2025: This article has been updated with more details that have since been revealed aboutThe Batman Part II, as well as recent developments in the DCU.
Several stories are waiting to unfold within Matt Reeves' Gotham, with it expected to play out inThe Batman Part IIas well as the upcomingPenguinseries for Max. Yet one story that is on everyone’s mind is that of Batman’s arch-enemy, The Joker. The Joker was teased at the end of The Batman with star Barry Keoghan in the role. A scene was deleted from the movie that would have featured the character, so does this mean The Joker will be in The Batman Part II?
The Ending of The Batman
At the end of the film,Edward Nashton, aka The Riddler, is apprehended and sent to Arkham Asylum. While in his cell, he hears the news that his plan to assassinate the newly-elected mayor has failed, leading him to shout in agony. But, he finds some solace in the words of an unknown inmate sitting right next to him in the adjacent cabin. Though his face isn’t shown, the hysterical laughter and the little glimpse of scars on his cheeks are enough to tell us who he is.
Barry Keoghan (Chornobyl, Dunkirk, Eternals)makes his debut as The Jokerin a cameo role in the film. Warner Bros. gaslighted everyone by naming his character “Officer Stanley Merkel,” but rumors about his secretive role started doing rounds, to the point where Warner Bros. had test screenings of the film without him. Now that we know he is in the film, and in this DC Universe dubbed as Earth-2, we can expect a few twists in the forthcoming films of the planned trilogy and the spinoffs that will tie into the films.
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While nothing is set in stone yet, it’s important to recall Matt Reeves has stated that he didn’t include the sequence to directly convey thepotential plot of the sequel. He has clearly stated that he isn’t fixated on adding Joker to his Batman’s rogues gallery and that the sequel may have a different antagonist. He even took out a whole sequence where Batman meets with the Joker to gain some insight into the mind of The Riddler, similar to the exchanges between Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling.
Does This “Earth-2 Batman” Really Need a Joker?
Many ink and video essays have been calling out what seems to be the running problem with The Joker. The character is the most powerful asset the Batman mythos have in their favor. He’s Bruce Wayne’s ultimate foe and has been relegated to event-status villain, with each of his appearances being pivotal to Batman lore.
The character has also seen a certain level of overexposure. There was a nineteen-year gap between Jack Nicholson’s Joker inBatmanand Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. Since Ledger’s Joker audiences got Jared Leto in 2016’sSuicide Squad, Joaquin Phoenix in 2019’sJoker, and, of course, Keoghan in the cameo role inThe Batman. One year beforeThe Batman Part IIhits theaters, Phoenix will reprise his role as Joker inJoker: Folie à Deux. This isn’t even taking into account the fact that theJoker will likely show up in some capacity in James Gunn’s rebooted DCU.
Matt Reeves’s choice to take out the Joker sequence (which lasted for five whole minutes) was criticized by many but praised by most who know better. While no one can hold anything against the actor, Barry Keoghan’s Joker suffers from a jarring issue that most people can easily take notice of, and that is his Joker resembles way too much the same take as Heath’s Ledger. In a time when Superhero films are suffering from a lack of original ideas, this has the potential to hurt the upcoming sequel.
Is the Story Between Batman and The Joker Worth Exploring in The Batman 2?
We have no idea how the Joker ended up in Arkham Asylum. InThe Batman, Bruce Wayne has been acting as the city’s vigilante and drifter for the past two years. He’s still figuring out the roots of the crime in Gotham and trying to find his purpose. His journey of transition from a vengeful vigilante to the city’s protector is what Reeves explored in the movie.
It’s possible that Bruce helped apprehend Joker sometime in the past.From the deleted sequence, it’s easy to tell the Joker has been onto Batman for some time now. When The Joker calms down the Riddler, it looks like he’s cooking up plans against the Bat. It’s fair to say these characters do have a history that goes back to the first two years of Bruce Wayne’s work in the city. But do we really need to explore it right away?
Matt Reeves has shown interest in exploring the origin of Batman villains, which he did with The Riddler, and plans to do with The Penguin in his own HBO Max Original. Reeves is set to explore the dealings behind Arkham Asylum in a showthat is still in acting development. If the project moves forward, this is the best way to peep into the backstory of The Joker in this peculiar universewithout touching up further development in the upcoming sequel, which should be focused on one of the many villains unexplored in Batman lore.
Batman vs. Joker: The Face-Off That May Never Come
Anything we say at this point is pure speculation. Barry Keoghan is willing to return if they call him to return as The Joker. He’s even addressed the criticism of some of the franchise’s most ardent fans, statinghe’s been preparing himself to take on the characterwith a brand-new take on the classic villain.
Keoghan is a pretty competent actor, so it’s not impossible for him to pull off something that feels fresh. One thing is certain: his Joker certainly looks run down and beaten, and we don’t know the cause of that. If we were to play 20 questions, it would be fair to ask: Is Batman responsible for the Joker’s disfigurement? Does this Joker hold a grudge that runs deep because of that?
There is a whole realm of possibilities to explore in the upcoming sequel. However, it’s also fair to state that giving up the Joker for the sake of a fresh Batman tale improves the chances of making the next entry in the franchise more unique. We certainly have our fair share of Joker tales to pick from. If you’re a fan of the character, you’d think one more can’t hurt, but it’s worth remembering thatBatman has a rich cast of villainsthat haven’t been explored in any film.
