10 Movies That Accidentally Made You Love The Villains
6. The Dark Knight - The Joker
It’s not as if The Joker was an unpopular character before Christopher Nolan got his hands on him. Yet the success of The Dark Knight cause a wave of new fans to send the villain to new heights. It’s been twelve years since the film’s release and Ledger’s take on the Clown Prince of Crime is still the most popular, even with two actors taking up the role since.
The cultural impact of his brilliant performance is still felt today, but what drew everyone to this version of the character is down to Ledger’s impeccable research and dedication to the role. The struggles that the actor went through are well known at this stage, but the work he put in to playing the Joker cemented his place in the hearts of fans.
He's perversely charming, even when he's getting away with incredibly heinous acts, and while Batman deflates him by the end, the fact that that feels so... tragic in itself says all you need to about the film's success in tricking us into liking him.