Ranking All 8 Incarnations Of Mark Hamill's Joker From Worst To Best

This was the first time Mark Hamill gave life to The Joker, and his legacy was cemented almost immediately.

Tim Curry was originally cast for the part but had to pull out due to a spell of bronchitis. This gave Hamill the problematic task of re-recording the lines to match The Joker's mouth movements (traditionally, the vocals are done first, allowing the animation to be drawn around the performance).

Despite the limitations, Hamill nailed the role, and the rest is history.

Classic villains of stage and screen inspired the voice, but most notably, Hamill cites Frank Gorshin's Riddler from the live-action sixties Batman show. His fun, bouncy, winding up jollity perfectly complements the sinister tones of the series' more terrifying moments, and gives The Joker an unpredictable quality.

There's also that laugh, or rather those laughs. Another reason why Hamill is so brilliant as the character is he doesn't have a set giggle. It can be anything from a happy cackle to a manic war cry.

It's this variety and energy, plus a willingness to adapt, that has kept Mark Hamill as the premier Joker for many years, across many guises, many genres, many formats, and many generations. May he long continue his reign as everyone's favorite Clown Prince of Crime.