Comic Book Movies

Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker  

Jason Robbins
32.4k votes 4.1k voters 45.7k views 47 items

List Rules Vote up the actors you'd most like to see play the Joker in future DC movies.

After his performance as the Joker in Suicide Squad was met with tepid reviews, Jared Leto declared he felt "tricked" into the role. So how about some idle speculation as to who could play the Joker in future Batman movies and DC cinematic universe films? After all, it appears Leto has soured on the gig, and movie studios are historically unforgiving when actors air dirty laundry from behind the scenes.

Should the role be recast, who could take on the mantle of the Clown Prince of Crime? Several factors need to be taken into consideration, as it must be assumed that Suicide Squad, and Leto's take on the character, will remain canon within the franchises, even in the case of a semi-reboot. So, the Joker must be played as a "hip" take on the classic Batman villain. After all, it has to be believable that Margot Robbie's Harley Quinn and he share a fiery romance. And, of course, the new actor must have the range to play dangerously unhinged, capable of going from calm to manic in a heartbeat.

Here, without further ado, is a list of fantasy Joker actors. Vote up the actors you can most clearly see wearing green and purple as they face off against Ben Affleck's Batman.

list ordered by
1
Willem Dafoe is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Mickael Kent added Finding Nemo, Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2
2
Cameron Monaghan is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
sullivanjc added Click, The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause, The Giver

Played Jerome Valeska on Gotham
3
Johnny Depp is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
KapTurtle added A Nightmare on Elm Street, Platoon, Edward Scissorhands
4
Iwan Rheon is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Wild Bill, Wasteland, Game of Thrones
5
Joaquin Phoenix is listed (or ranked) 5 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Gladiator, Signs, Hotel Rwanda
6
Crispin Glover is listed (or ranked) 6 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Back to the Future, Alice in Wonderland, Back to the Future Part II
7
Hugh Dancy is listed (or ranked) 7 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
RazzleDazzle(Crimsonny) added Black Hawk Down, Ella Enchanted, King Arthur
8
David Tennant is listed (or ranked) 8 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, How to Train Your Dragon, Fright Night
9
Evan Peters is listed (or ranked) 9 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
kyle-goldson added X-Men: Days of Future Past, Kick-Ass, Never Back Down
10
Bill Skarsgård is listed (or ranked) 10 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
KapTurtle added Anna Karenina, Arn - The Kingdom at Road's End, Simon and the Oaks
11
James Franco is listed (or ranked) 11 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2, Spider-Man 3
12
Rami Malek is listed (or ranked) 12 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1, Mr. Robot, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2
13
Sam Rockwell is listed (or ranked) 13 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Moon, Iron Man 2, The Green Mile
14
Walton Goggins is listed (or ranked) 14 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Django Unchained, The Bourne Identity, Lincoln
15
Frank Dillane is listed (or ranked) 15 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, In the Heart of the Sea, Fear the Walking Dead
16
Jake Gyllenhaal is listed (or ranked) 16 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Donnie Darko, Brokeback Mountain, Zodiac
17
Jim Carrey is listed (or ranked) 17 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
KapTurtle added Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Batman Forever, Dumb and Dumber
18
Joseph Gordon-Levitt is listed (or ranked) 18 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
The Dark Knight Rises, Inception, 10 Things I Hate About You
19
Adrien Brody is listed (or ranked) 19 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
King Kong, Natural Born Killers, The Pianist
20
Gustaf Skarsgård is listed (or ranked) 20 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Gustaf Skarsgård The Way Back, Evil, Arn – The Knight Templar
21
Giovanni Ribisi is listed (or ranked) 21 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
KapTurtle added Saving Private Ryan, Avatar, Lost in Translation
22
Paul Bettany is listed (or ranked) 22 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
The Avengers, Iron Man, Iron Man 3
23
Sharlto Copley is listed (or ranked) 23 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
District 9, Elysium, Maleficent
24
Neil Patrick Harris is listed (or ranked) 24 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Starship Troopers, The Smurfs, The Muppets
25
Andrew Scott is listed (or ranked) 25 on the list Actors Who Could Replace Jared Leto as the Joker
Saving Private Ryan, Locke, Nora