Mark Hamill Shares Touching Story About Original Harley Quinn Voice Actress Arleen Sorkin

By Aaron Perine

Mark Hamill just shared a touching story about Harley Quinn's original voice actress. Fans of Batman: The Animated Series might not know that Arleen Sorkin voiced the villain. She was one of the breakout elements of that beloved show. Harley became so popular that she's a regular part of the Bat-Universe now. But, a lot of that has to do with Sorkin. According to Hamill, this is all true. She was originally conceived as a female henchman for the Joker to deliver dialogue to. But, after the initial reception, she was upgraded to a more regular presence on The Animated Series. Paul Dini and Bruce Timm are pretty much worshiped as it relates to The Caped Crusader, but Harley might be their biggest addition to the canon. (Though, to be fair, there are a ton of moments from that run that have bled into other versions of Batman.) It would also be hard to discount Sorkin as the magic sauce that makes the dish. Her vocal performance has been carried over into most appearances of Harley in other media like the HBO Max cartoon and the Arkham game series. Check out what Hamill had to say down below.

Hamill wrote, "She had no specific name in the script... just Joker's Hench-Wench. I'll never forget hearing Arleen voice her for the 1st time. We were all knocked out by her performance & knew we were witnessing greatness. #BirthOfAnIcon Thank you, Arleen! from your [Joker emoji]"

The voice of Harley Quinn on HBO Max might have lightened up on the accent just a tad, but she's still paying homage to what came before. In a previous interview, Kaley Cuoco also mentioned that she's amazed at what they are allowed to get away with featuring such a popular character.

"I can't believe we're still getting away with it," Cuoco said. I kept thinking they were going to be like, 'you can't say these things.' It has been a total ride. People are obsessed with the show. I love playing her. I don't know how it happened. But it's been insane. And it's Harley Quinn on acid while drinking a Starbucks. That's kind of how I describe her." 

What version of Harley do you like the most? Let us know down in the comments!

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