How David Bowie Helped Shape The Image Of DC's Staple Villain

Similar to how David Bowie used multiple personas throughout his career, there are countless incarnations of Batman's main rival, the Joker, throughout the Batman comics. Each writer for the comics has their own personal spin and inspiration for their version of the Joker, and Bowie served as the inspiration for not just one but two writers of the hit comic series in the 1980s.

Frank Miller's 1986 "The Dark Knight Returns" features a new, darker Joker. According to Far Out Magazine, when writing his Joker, Miller had David Bowie in mind, and Bowie's cover art for his 1980 album, "Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)," influenced the Joker's new look. Miller's version of the Joker also displayed many of Bowie's mannerisms, including casual cigarette smoking and the use of the word "darling" (via CBR.com). In an interview with IGN, Miller said, "Yeah, if I had to cast the Joker from Dark Knight, I probably would have used David Bowie, who I think was capable of great menace." While there were some discussions of a screenplay adaptation back in the 1980s, with Bowie in consideration for the Joker role, it never came to fruition (via Far Out Magazine). In an interview with EW, Jared Leto claims that his portrayal of the Joker in "The Suicide Squad" was also inspired by Bowie, saying that it was "not necessarily the music of David, but his class, his elegance, his timelessness." 

Though Miller's Joker was the first Bowie-inspired version, it wouldn't be the last.

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