In the wake ofJoker: Folie a Deux’sbox office failure,Terrifierstar David Howard Thornton opened up about his thoughts on joiningthe DC Universe. Despite already playing a Clown-themed antagonist, the actor revealed that he is absolutely game to play Batman’s greatest foe. In an interview withTotal Film, he stated:
The Joker is my favorite villain of all time, and that’s a character I would love to play myself one day. So hopefully someone like James Gunn gives me the opportunity to tackle that character because I would like to do a lot of fun things with him.
Thornton has now played a psychopathic clown for 3 films within theTerrifierfranchise.The series is known for its excessive gore. In fact, the first testscreenings ofTerrifier 3were so gruesome, audience members were seen vomitingand walking out of the theater. Interestingly, the firstTerrifierfilm only received a 58% score on Rotten Tomatoes,whileTerrifier 2andTerrifier 3were scored 86% and 87%, respectively. This bucks the trend of horror movies typically getting progressively lower scores further into the franchise.
This could partially be due to Thornton’s performance as Art the Clown, which is often singled out by audiences. He brings a maniacal energy to the role that puts him on par with some of the slasher greats. While he could bring something to the table as the Joker,playing another psychopathic clown could make it difficult for audiences to distinguish his DC character from his role inTerrifier.
What David Howard Thornton’s Joker Casting Would Mean For DC
Regardless, Thornton’s casting could be interesting, and it would have huge ramifications on the DC Universe. James Gunn and Peter Safran have yet to announce any projects featuring the Joker within their continuity, but even withJoker: Folie a Deux’sdisappointing reception, they’re likely to bring the character back at some point. After all, he is often considered Batman’s archenemy. Casting Thornton could give fans a more physically brutal Joker than that of past films. A self-proclaimed “huge comic book geek,” Thornton says he has loved the Joker since his childhood.
The actor used to carry an action figure of the Clown Prince of Crime around.He even considers the Joker one of the inspirations behind Art the Clown, stating: “I kind of look at Art as being an amalgamation of all the horror icons that came before him. There are little bits and pieces of every single one of those characters, from Jason to Pinhead to Freddy, Chucky, Jigsaw, all of them.“His level of dedication to the Joker and knowledge of the source material could be an asset for DC,as well as his talent as a character actor.
Our Take On Terrifier’s Star Playing The Joker
Though his casting would run the risk of being too on-the-nose, Thornton has proven he’s capable of playing a maniacal antagonist. He’s played a similar character before, and he’s done his research. Depending on what vision Gunn has for the Joker, he could bring the scariest Joker we’ve seen yet tothe DC Universe.
DC Universe
The DC Universe is one of the biggest comic book franchises and often competes with Marvel. DC Comics started as National Allied Publications, founded by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson in 1935. Since then, the franchise has exploded with thousands of comic books, movies, TV shows, and video games. 2013 marked the beginning of the most recent iteration of the superheroes, with Zack Snyder introducing Henry Cavill as Superman. After several movies with mixed reviews, DC underwent a soft reboot under the helm of James Gunn and Peter Safran.
