Mortal Kombat 11 Concept Art Reveals Joker Almost Had a Heath Ledger-Inspired Look

There’s been a lot debate over the years on what iteration of the Joker is the best. However, if there’s one aspect of the debate everyone can agree on is it’s not the latest iteration of the DC Comics’ villain that NetherRealm Studios and Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment have cooked up for Mortal Kombat 11. This week, Joker was added to the best-selling fighting game as its latest DLC character alongside some new DC-themed skins for specific characters. For example, Kitana now has a Catwoman skin players are in love with. However, while fans are in love with some of the new DC skins, there isn’t as much love for Joker’s design. Don’t get me wrong, there’s been plenty of Joker hype, but that has more to do with the character itself rather than the design.

That said, it looks like at one point NetherRealm Studios was looking at a variety of designs for the character, or at least that’s what some newly surfaced concept art seems to suggest. And included in these prototype designs are some designs that clearly draw inspiration from Heath Ledger’s take on the Batman baddie, which, as you may know, is one of the most popular takes on the character to date.

Mortal Kombat 11 is available for PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, Google Stadia, and PC. At the moment of publishing, there’s been no word of any additional ports. However, presumably a definitive edition with all the DLC characters packed in is in the pipeline, and will likely come to PS5 and Xbox Series X this holiday season or sometime next year.

“Mortal Kombat 11 is a blast from the past with its inclusion of seasoned characters and their former selves, while also being something for the modern age,” reads a snippet from our review of the game. “Its stellar gameplay, both mechanically and graphically, is easily the best the franchise has ever seen. While there may be an issue when it comes to the Towers of Time, everything from its Story Mode and incredible Custom Character Variation System to the Klassic Towers and going toe-to-toe with players online provides a fighting experience that is unmatched and worthy of being picked up by any combatant, old and new alike.”

H/T, Reddit.