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Joker (character)
After Christopher Nolan 's successful 2005 Batman film reboot , Batman Begins , which ended with a teaser for the Joker 's involvement in a sequel , the character appeared in 2008 's The Dark Knight , played by Heath Ledger as an avatar of anarchy and chaos . While Batman Begins earned a worldwide total of $370 million ; The Dark Knight earned over $1 billion and was the highest - grossing film of the year , setting several box - office records ( including highest - grossing midnight opening , opening day and opening weekend ) . Ledger won a posthumous Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance , the first acting Oscar ever won for a superhero film . The Joker has featured in a number of animated projects , such as 2009 's Batman : The Brave and the Bold ( voiced by Jeff Bennett ) and 2011 's Young Justice ( voiced by Brent Spiner ) , and comic book adaptations ( including 2010 's Batman : Under the Red Hood , in which he is voiced by John DiMaggio ) . In 2012 , Michael Emerson voiced the character in a two - part animated adaptation of The Dark Knight Returns . Jared Leto portrayed the Joker in Suicide Squad ( 2016 ) , and Zach Galifianakis voiced the character in The Lego Batman Movie ( 2017 ) .
After Christopher Nolan 's successful 2005 Batman film reboot , Batman Begins , which ended with a teaser for the Joker 's involvement in a sequel , the character appeared in 2008 's The Dark Knight , played by Heath Ledger as an avatar of anarchy and chaos . While Batman Begins earned a worldwide total of $370 million ; The Dark Knight earned over $1 billion and was the highest - grossing film of the year , setting several box - office records ( including highest - grossing midnight opening , opening day and opening weekend ) . Ledger won a posthumous Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance , the first acting Oscar ever won for a superhero film . The Joker has featured in a number of animated projects , such as 2009 's Batman : The Brave and the Bold ( voiced by Jeff Bennett ) and 2011 's Young Justice ( voiced by Brent Spiner ) , and comic book adaptations ( including 2010 's Batman : Under the Red Hood , in which he is voiced by John DiMaggio ) . In 2012 , Michael Emerson voiced the character in a two - part animated adaptation of The Dark Knight Returns . Jared Leto portrayed the Joker in Suicide Squad ( 2016 ) , and Zach Galifianakis voiced the character in The Lego Batman Movie ( 2017 ) .