The Dark Knight: Joker? Hah! Harvey Dent is the One to Watch

Posted by Michelle Graham (michelle@filmschoolrejects.com) on January 13, 2008

While everyone’s eyes are on the cackling Joker in the next Batman feature, The Dark Knight, IGN reports that Christopher Nolan, the director of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, says perhaps we should focus our attention elsewhere. The Joker may be the most high profile of the characters in Dark Knight, and it’s easy to see why. The Joker is one of the most lasting and iconic figures of pop culture, due in large part to the portrayal by Jack Nicholson in the original Batman. However,in an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Nolan said:

“Harvey Dent is a tragic figure, and his story is the backbone of this film.”

And to fans of the comic, this makes a lot of sense. Harvey Dent (played by Aaron Eckhart) is a District Attorney for the city of Gotham, and will feature as the main villian in the next sequel, after he disintegrates into Two Face, a character last played on the big screen by Tommy Lee Jones in Batman Forever, around which time the last Batman franchise started becoming a byword for laughable. Harvey Dent himself has never really been a focus of a Batman movie, and it seems that Nolan intends to change all that, by focusing on the character before he becomes a villain and showing a more human side.

However, Nolan didn’t dismiss the Joker’s character completely whilst lauding Dent’s, he went on to say:

“The Joker, he sort of cuts through (The Dark Knight), … He’s got no story arc, he’s just a force of nature tearing through. Heath has given an amazing performance in the role, it’s really extraordinary.”


Read more articles by Michelle Graham

« Previous Article | Next Article »

Related Topics:

Movie News, , , , , ,

Related Reading:

Your Ad Here

Comment Policy: No hate speech allowed. If you must argue, please debate intelligently. Comments containing selected keywords or outbound links will be put into moderation to help prevent spam. Film School Rejects reserves the right to delete comments and ban anyone who doesn't follow the rules. We also reserve the right to modify any curse words in your comments and make you look like an idiot. Thank You!

  • NinKenDo
    I'm actually very glad to hear this news and makes me even more hopeful and excited for this sequel. Two Face is a fantastic villain and that is mainly because Harvey Dent is such a great character and I think this will be really cool to see the transition from Dent in Dark Knight into Two Face in the next film.
  • In Batman Forever, Two Face, aka Harvey Dent was a real joke. He was just a regular villain without any real recognition. The animated Batman series features Two Face much better than Batman Forever.

    Two Face popularity will definitely rise once Nolan complete his third movie. Though the Joker is still my favorite villain, Two Face is right below the Joker.
  • Thanks for the information, interesting..
  • Gotham's Finest
    First of all I loved both Tim Burton's 1989 Batman and Jack Nicholson's portrayal of The
    Joker. Still, I have to object to the author of this article referring to it as the "original"
    Batman. I seem to remember a very cheesy 1966 movie and according to IMDB there was
    another movie in 1943. Having not seen the earlier one I can speak for its quality and I'm
    sure many die hard Dark Knight fans would like to forget the 1966 camp-fest, but let's give
    credit where credit is due. The 1989 Batman may have been the first movie to take Bruce
    and his alter ego seriously but it was in no way the "original."
  • Retroboy
    The only thing I hope is that they don't off the Joker at the end of this one. It seems all the superhero movies have one thing in common with one single exception - every villain gets it at the end... except Lex Luthor.

    I'd like to see the Joker become a constant thorn in Batman's side through the series, either engineering things on behalf of other villains, or just plain being nasty by his little ol' lonesome.
  • DoLLfAcE
    heh, i agree wholeheartedly! only thing is, since beloved Heath Ledger(god rest his soul) is gone, they'd better get someone equally as good to play Joker. Otherwise it will lose my interest and I'll have to remain a loyal fan of the Dark Knight Joker and let him have his due.____DoLLfAcE
  • Retroboy - I am with you there. I think that they should keep the Joker around so that he can resurface in the next flick. Logistically, that could cause problems if Heath Ledger isn't signed on for more, but my sources tell me that there is an option in his contract for more films. The faith that I have in Christopher Nolan also tells me to expect the Joker to stick around a bit.
  • Yep I'm wondering how Heath could beat Jack in his portrayal of the Joker..will be interesting to watch. If the concentration of the villians is the main importance of the film, is there any need for Maggie G's involvement?
  • David
    I'm hoping that Joker gets sent to Arkham, at the end of this. So then, we can see some great Harley Quinn action.
  • people have speculated or even read some places that the dr. who becomes harley quinn does make an apperance somewheres in the film. this would be an opportune time to introduce her as a 'regular person' and develop the big relationship b/w her and the joker.
blog comments powered by Disqus