The Joker Not Returning for The Batman 2 Might’ve Quietly Been Confirmed

At long last, The Batman Part II has finally commenced production, ending a saga that saw multiple release date delays and a slow-developing script. Assuming everything goes smoothly from here, the film should remain on track to premiere in October 2027. Though cameras are now rolling, there’s still much about the highly anticipated sequel that fans do not know. As they await official updates about the story and character arcs, much of the conversation surrounding the movie has revolved around the cast. Director Matt Reeves attracted some big names to the ensemble, recruiting Marvel stars Sebastian Stan and Scarlett Johansson. Other newcomers include Charles Dance and Brian Tyree Henry.

Of course, The Batman Part II is set to feature the returns of many actors from 2022’s The Batman — and not just the heavy hitters one would expect (Robert Pattinson, Colin Farrell, Andy Serkis). Also coming back are the likes of Con O’Neill and Gil Perez-Abraham, who play prominent officers in Gotham’s police force. There’s no denying that The Batman Part II has a stacked cast, but there’s one notable actor who’s missing from the call sheet: Barry Keoghan, who brought the Joker to life in a memorable scene towards the end of The Batman.

Barry Keoghan’s Joker May Not Be In The Batman Part II

As The Batman Part II geared up to begin filming, director Matt Reeves commemorated the occasion by announcing the cast on his social media. Over the course of two days, he revealed 12 actors who are part of the movie. The first day was spent confirming the returning cast members. There was no post for Barry Keoghan, seemingly suggesting that he will not be reprising the Joker in the sequel. Back in January, reports indicated that Keoghan would be back in The Batman Part II, but based on Reeves’ updates, that isn’t in the cards.

Scheduling issues could be the main culprit here. Keoghan has been cast as Ringo Starr for Sam Mendes’ ambitious Beatles biopic project. The Oscar-winning director is making four films based on the legendary band, each one revolving around a different member. The movies are all currently shooting and are scheduled to premiere in 2028. Considering the scale of this undertaking, Keoghan will likely be busy playing Ringo for a while, preventing him from returning to the Batman Epic Crime Saga for the foreseeable future. Perhaps he could find the time for a brief cameo, but probably nothing more than that.

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One could make the case that Reeves deliberately didn’t post a tweet for Keoghan in order to preserve an element of surprise, but that theory doesn’t hold much water. If Keoghan was in The Batman Part II, odds are Reeves would have confirmed it. His posts weren’t reserved for only the main characters; he included supporting players like Gotham police officers and Mayor Bella Reál. Keoghan’s involvement in The Batman was kept under wraps so his reveal made the maximum impact, but now that fans know he played Joker in the first film, there’s little reason to keep him hidden this time around. People have been waiting to see if and when he’ll return, so holding him back for another surprise reveal would come across as anticlimactic.

Interestingly, Paul Dano’s Riddler was another The Batman villain absent from Reeves’ posts. When last we saw the Riddler, he was in Arkham Asylum befriending the Joker (who was talking about how much Gotham enjoys a comeback story). That scene seemed to be laying the groundwork for a Joker/Riddler team-up in a future movie. However, if Reeves’ tweets are anything to go by, fans are going to have to wait a while longer before seeing that come to fruition. It does not appear as if Joker or Riddler will be in The Batman Part II.

Will Barry Keoghan’s Joker Return At All In Matt Reeves’ Batman Franchise?

Assuming Keoghan doesn’t return in The Batman Part II, it won’t be the most surprising development. It was never expected that the Joker would be the main villain in the sequel. There have been rumors and theories about various other members of Batman’s iconic rogues’ gallery, including Hush, the Court of Owls, and even Mr. Freeze. Since so many story details are a mystery for the time being, it’s still difficult to say for sure who the primary antagonist(s) will be, but it looks like the Dent family will have a considerable role to play, with Stan in line to play the famous district attorney. Johansson is said to be portraying Gilda Dent, while Dance is playing Harvey’s father. Recent quotes from Stan have implied that Harvey could be transforming into Two-Face in The Batman Part II.

The Batman Part II is not going to be the end of Reeves’ franchise. The director has plans to make a third movie, which ideally will not take five years to come to fruition. Obviously, there’s no telling where the story could go in The Batman 3, but it would be reasonable to assume the Joker could have some role to play. A smart filmmaker like Reeves would not include the Joker scene in The Batman for no reason at all. While the movie works as a standalone, self-contained narrative, it was also the first installment in a new franchise, and filmmakers love to lay breadcrumbs for future entries. The tease of the Joker and the Riddler getting out of Arkham and causing chaos together is too big of a thread to leave dangling.

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It certainly seems like Reeves has plans to utilize the Joker down the line. He just might have felt that The Batman Part II wasn’t the right time for them. The Riddler only became an inmate at Arkham in the first movie. It arguably would have been too soon to release him in the first sequel. Instead, Reeves saw The Batman Part II as an opportunity to explore other areas of the rich Gotham City mythos while Riddler and Joker are put on ice for a while. Fans will then get the chance to miss those characters, making it seem like more of a special event when they return down the line.

The Joker has been brought to live several times on the big screen. A convincing argument can be made that there are plenty of other Batman villains who are worthy of the cinematic spotlight, and Reeves should look to have The Batman 3 revolve around one of them. That’s all fair, but at the same time, the Joker is one of the most iconic characters in all of pop culture. It’s hard to envision a scenario where Reeves’ Batman trilogy ends without giving the Clown Prince of Crime a meaningful role at some point. Keoghan’s profile has only grown since his part in The Batman, so bringing him back as the big bad in the series finale would make a great deal of sense.

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