10 Iconic Actors Who Almost Played Batman Villians
4. Tim Curry As The Joker - Batman: The Animated Series
Anyone who’s seen Stephen King's IT will know Tim Curry excels playing nightmarish clowns, so naturally his name was on a shortlist when Joker was being cast for the 1989 film. He didn't land that one, but when the animated series came around the producers straight up hired him for the role.
He recorded around three episodes before they decided his approach was too dark for a kid’s show, so they replaced him with Mark Hamill and re-recorded all his dialogue. It’s hard to argue with the success of this approach since Hamill really made the part his own, but Curry's creepier take on Mr J could have been something special. Who knows, maybe his recordings will be made available some day and we can judge for ourselves.
Curry clearly didn’t have any hard feelings either; he voiced another character during the first season and played Mutro Botho in Batman Beyond.