Suicide Squad: 11 Key Influences You'll See In Jared Leto's Joker

9. The Man Who Laughs

Despite the obvious influences in the design of Greg Capullo's most recent design reinventions for the Joker, the simpler facial design (no scars, no make-up) and the severe haircuts of both that and Leto's new look owe a lot to the original inspiration for the Joker. The wonderfully creepy The Man Who Laughs has long been suggested as the launching point for the Joker, and it's hard to avoid the similarities. The manic grin, blackened eyes and pale skin pulled tighter with slicked back hair have all survived into Leto's take on the character, and you have to think it's not accidental. Yes the tattoos and the grill are radical departures, but it's a fairly compelling argument that Leto's super-modern Joker has more in common with Conrad Veidt's grinning tragedy, and the fact that the actor referred to his character as a "beautiful disaster" fits more with the idea of the tortured maniac that sits with The Man Who Laughs most comfortably.