Zack Snyder’s Justice League, or the pop culture phenomenon known as the Snyder Cut, represents a second chance for the DC Extended Universe. If it lives up to expectations and stays true to Snyder’s vision, it’ll redeem everything from Batfleck and Cyborg to Steppenwolf and the Joker. As a four-hour movie on HBO Max, it’ll certainly have the time. Time for Darkseid to drop in, Knightmare futures to be explored, and tattoos to be removed.
The return of Jared Leto’s Joker is something no one expected. The method actor’s performance in David Ayer’s Suicide Squad was the victim of creative confusion and a gargantuan precedent. Punk rock may work for MGK but it didn’t for Mr. J. After black and white photographs (one in which Leto sports a crown of thorns) and a trailer that brings a meme to life, this new Justice League looks to make Leto’s Clown Prince of Crime less of a punchline. Hopefully, Leto’s reprisal will be enough scrub to Suicide Squad from our minds…or maybe he is better off driving a purple sports car. In this edition of Mandatory Movie Battles, we look at what we know (and what we think we know) of the Snyder Cut’s SWAT team member and pit him against Suicide Squad’s eccentric thug.
Cover Photo: Warner Bros.
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No surprise here; while Suicide Squad’s Joker is hyper and annoying, the Snyder Cut’s is dark and sullen—just what Dr. Harleen Quinzel ordered. Leto’s reprisal doesn’t have to live up to Nicholson, Ledger, or Phoenix, it just has to be true to Leto. His last crack at the role buckled under the pressure of expectation. Fans may or may not have been rooting for Leto in 2016 but they definitely are now. It’s not a stretch to say audiences will love the return of Leto’s Joker and, in turn, the Snyder Cut irrespective of critical reception. At this point, people just want to see what Snyder intended, unrestrained by studio interference.
Overall Winner: The Snyder Cut
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Jared Leto Jokers
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Storyline
Suicide Squad explores the demented happenings/backstory of psychiatrist Dr. Harleen Quinzel (turned Harley Quinn) and her patient, Gotham City crime boss, the Joker. The pair’s introduction is interesting enough but after Harley is imprisoned and blackmailed into becoming a member of the Suicide Squad, the Joker spends the film as an afterthought, chasing Harley’s tail—the real star.
Thanks to Suicide Squad and other DCEU “failures,” Leto’s Joker was all but abandoned. Foreshadowing via Easter Eggs like the tagged “HA HA HA Joke’s On You, Batman” Robin suit in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was never cashed in on. Now, those story threads are set to return amid the post-apocalyptic landscape/the Knightmare future first depicted in B v S courtesy of the Snyder Cut, allowing Batfleck and his Joker to meet face-to-face and discuss what exactly happened to Boy Wonder (among other things).
As fellow survivors of a Knightmare future provoked by the Apokoliptian invaders (or a black-clad/evil Superman and/or Darkseid), the Joker will likely even align himself with Batman; criminal activity and vigilantism being a moot point in a world on fire. As two sides of the same philosophical coin, the pair will put aside their differences and work together. Enter bromance. Character development the likes of which Batfleck has never seen. In the same way that the death of Lois Lane often sends Clark Kent into a frenzy, it’s not hard to imagine Mr. J tormented by the death of Harley Quinn, sending the former on a suicide mission that restores equilibrium and makes Bruce Wayne contemplate preconceived notions about “freaks dressed like clowns.”
Winner: The Snyder Cut
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Costume
Suicide Squad's wardrobe is ostentatious. A modern-day Scarface compiled with a pinch of colorful chaos—either topless, rocking gun holsters, gold chains, or suits one would only associate with strip joints. If anything, this departure from the usual Joker garb is bold but the risk ended up outweighing the reward. Snyder’s new costumes (as seen in that still and the trailer) are comprised of a hospital gown and a white shirt covered by a SWAT vest (souvenirs from officers he killed). The grit of these ensembles is much more in line with what we love about previous incarnations of the Joker—a psychopath who’s anything but materialistic. The latter attribute is one of the major reasons Suicide Squad’s stylistic Joker doesn't make sense. Philosophical musings in tow, Leto is returning in more nuanced apparel and we’re here for it. Still, props to Ayer and Leto for rolling that initial dice.
Winner: Suicide Squad
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Voice
In Suicide Squad, Leto employs everything from the squealing cackles of Mark Hamill to the mumbles of Heath Ledger. It’s like watching an existential crisis masquerading as a cheap imitation. In the Snyder Cut trailer, the Joker says “we live in a society where honor is a distant memory - isn't that right Batman?" Not only does this seem to mock the long-standing meme that praised a Joker-like philosophy (c'mon internet, relax) but it’s delivered with more clarity and confidence than Suicide Squad’s Joker—it sounds like Leto. This gives the actor room to finally make the character his own.
Winner: The Snyder Cut
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Tattoos
Tattoos are a thing of the past for the likes of Mark Wahlberg, Pete Davidson (allegedly), and the Joker. Leto’s Joker in Suicide Squad defines himself by a sporadic selection of tats—how else would we know the renowned maniac has issues if not for the “HAHA’ lettering and “Damaged” stamped on his forehead? Calling this aesthetic “on-the-nose” would be an understatement. Generally, fans were not pro-body art. As evident by the doves Halloween imitators and tattoo parlors that now house shrines, an inked Joker is like a Nicolas Cage movie—so bad, it’s goo...bad.
Winner: The Snyder Cut
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Makeup
If there’s anyone who can withstand the searing pain of laser removal (or perhaps relish in it), it’d be the Joker. Based on Snyder Cut footage we’ve seen so far, everything from “HAHA” to “Damaged” is either hidden or completely gone—nothing more than a drunken mistake. In addition to this, his hair and makeup are much less high maintenance. His hair appears more black than green and his face is caked in white paint (or burned) with smeared red across his lips. It’s a look both reminiscent of Heath Ledger’s Joker and entirely its own. Given the lack of materials available in a post-apocalyptic future, the haphazard nature of this appearance is both refreshing and makes sense.
Winner: The Snyder Cut
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Future
Before Snyder’s, DCEU was essentially scrapped and Joaquin Phoenix’s Oscar-winning Joker, a Joker solo film (starring Leto) was in the works. Leto’s appearance in The Snyder Cut could be more than a gimmick and Snyder’s vision for the DCEU (or whatever it’s called now) may live on. The DCEU is already set to introduce a Multiverse and have multiple Batmen in play (Keaton, Batfleck, Pattinson). Phoenix is also expected to return in a sequel to 2019’s Joker. If Pattinson’s The Batman trilogy introduces another psychopath with an affinity for face paint, there’s no reason Leto’s Joker can’t live on. But not Suicide Squad’s Joker. He’ll most likely retire to the same comic book purgatory inhabited by Jim Carrey’s Riddler.
Winner: The Snyder Cut
