11 Best Recast Movie Roles Of All Time
3. Heath Ledger As The Joker
What can be said about Ledger's Joker that hasn't already been said?
Nicholson delivered an iconic performance in the 1989 Batman film, one that would have been a tall order for any actor to match, much less top. And when it was announced that Nolan's second Bat-film would feature Heath Ledger as the classic villain, fans were less than enthusiastic. That is until they actually saw the performance.
Ledger's performance was groundbreaking and innovative, not only changing how audiences looked at the Joker as a character but changing how audiences looked at villains as a whole. He channeled a kind of internal chaos and magnetism that was hard to look away from and wound up stealing every single scene he was in. Even now, ten years later, a film like Black Panther evokes his name and performance when trying to craft a compelling and complicated comic book villain.
Ultimately, Ledger's take on the work more than earned the right to stand alongside the legendary performances of Mark Hamill and Jack Nicholson. He received a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor and left his mark on one of the most iconic characters of all time.