Irish star of the moment Barry Keoghan will build upon his brief foray into the world of Gotham villainy in The Batman – Part II.
Irish film fans were excited to learn that Barry Keoghan’s character in Matt Reeves’s epic The Batman – credited as Unseen Arkham Prisoner – was indeed the iconic DC Comics villain, the Joker.
After his cameo in Reeves’s film, a deleted scene between Keoghan’s Joker and Robert Pattinson’s titular hero soon surfaced.
As Gotham spiralled into descent and chaos, Robert Pattinson’s Batman confronted the Joker as he lay in jail. Keoghan’s superb job with his eerie and evil laugh rattled Batman and left the audience wanting more of this iconic movie villain.
Thankfully, it looks like that wish has been granted. Rather than simply a cameo appearance, it seems Barry Keoghan’s Joker will return in part two of the movie.
The stardom of Barry Keoghan – a rising Irish star in Hollywood
Saltburn stole the spotlight as 2023 drew to a close, thanks in many ways to the performance of Barry Keoghan, one of Ireland’s highest-rising actors. He played the role of Oliver Quick so well that it earned him a BAFTA nomination for best actor.
Keoghan also earned many plaudits for his fantastic and emotional performance in The Banshees of Inisherin, starring alongside Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson in an instant Irish classic.
All of this has added even more intrigue and hype to his role as the Joker. His range of skills to date is making fans excited to see what he can produce as Batman’s greatest foe.
Returning as the Joker – Keoghan gives an indirect response
In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, Keoghan was asked, “Looking ahead, you’ve got the miniseries Masters of the Air, and you’re also playing the Joker in DC’s The Batman – Part II. What do you want your career to look like going forward?”.
Keoghan didn’t directly answer the question in relation to the Joker, but he didn’t deny it either. No doubt because he will return for The Batman – Part II, we say.
Back in December, in response to a similar question, he said, “I can’t really say anything about it, but it would be exciting, wouldn’t it? Seeing the Joker come to life again. My smile says it all, you know what that means”.
It only means one thing: Barry Keoghan will return as the Joker in The Batman – Part II.
The sequel – what to expect
The Batman – Part II has been confirmed and will again be directed by Matt Reeves. It is scheduled for release on 3 October 2025, and will form part of a trilogy of movies.
A spin-off show is also in the making, with fellow Irish actor Colin Farrell returning as the Penguin following his fantastic performance as the villain in The Batman.
While Barry Keoghan didn’t answer Vanity Fair’s question, he did say, “Artistically, I’m really comfortable with digging deeper to kind of push myself and bring in some more raw emotion – really break myself down trying to search and discover new performances”.
No doubt Keoghan will apply this formula to his role as the Joker come 2025.
