10 Comics Characters You Didn’t Know Were Rip-Offs

1. The Joker (Man Who Laughs)

The Joker is The Enemy. He's the Devil, he's the predator, he's the dark under your bed, the thing waiting for you at the end of your life, the smile as you die. He's pretty rad. And, like Batman, the Joker was dragged straight from the silver screen to the golden age of comics.

See, when coming up with the Joker, his creators saw an exaggerated smile - a clip from the movie The Man Who Laughs. It's a 1920s film, based on the novel of the same name by Victor "I did Les Mis and Hunchback of Notre Dame" Hugo, about a man who has a twisted, disfigured grin. Despite the film not being horror - it's a melodrama - some critics argued it counts as the title character was so horrifying.

While the creators aren't sure who came up with what when, all of them agree that the Joker's sinister smile, pale white skin, and terrifying look all come from The Man Who Laughs.

But that wasn't the end of the Joker's cinematic influences. When Jack Nicholson appeared as the Joker, he took more than a little bit of influence from his previous role as Jack Torrance. Heath Ledger meanwhile seems to have ripped off the Crow. Jared Leto's Joker was such a rip-off that Die Antworood (those weirdos in Chappie? no?) even called him out. Can't wait to see the next Joker. Maybe he'll be a rip-off of Optimus Prime or Eminem.

Know of any other comic book characters who were conceptualised under dubious circumstances? Be sure to let us know in the comments below!