The first hint that we got, of course, was the laugh. As the San Diego Comic-Con footage for David Ayer’s Suicide Squad drew to a close, off camera, you heard the distinct laugh. Then, he came into frame. It was Jared Leto’s Joker, and here’s the scariest part. He wasn’t in his cell. He was holding what looked like electrical paddles in his hands, and he was speaking to someone who might have been lying on a table or a bed.
And these are the first words that we hear Jared Leto’s version of the Joker say in the ever-evolving DC Cinematic Universe:
Oh, I’m not going to kill you. I’m just going to hurt you. Real bad!"
What can we tell you about The Joker’s look? It is very similar to what you saw in the promo image that dropped online months ago. The one that people took umbrage with. His teeth do appear to be capped, or possibly replaced with a metallic grill. The tattoos are there, including the ones on his face and arm. The footage flies by quick, but I swear that I saw that teardrop/sword/lightning bolt thing on this face. (For real, what is that?) Here, a reminder of what Leto looked like in the first-look Joker image.
As for the laugh. It’s deeper than you would imagine. Not high-pitched or demonic. More throaty, and in control. He dances around his subject, but he’s DEFINITELY terrifying. This won’t be the only scene of The Joker that we get in Suicide Squad. Though he wasn’t shown in these clips, we do see footage of Batman (Ben Affleck) riding on top of Joker’s car as Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) makes jokes about Mr. J having good insurance. And from what we know about Suicide Squad, The Joker is going to play a Hannibal Lecter-type villain who manipulates the players from behind the bars of his cell. Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) locked him away after Batman incarcerated him. But like I said, when we see Joker, he’s not in a cell. Or a straight jacket. And that’s disturbing.
David Ayer continues to film Suicide Squad as we speak. He has a number of high-profile villains to juggle, from Deadshot (Will Smith) to Killer Croc (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). We had some fun speculating about whether or not The Joker might show up in Batman v Superman, where his presence definitely will be felt. But today’s video confirms that he’ll play a major role in Suicide Squad when it opens in theaters on August 5, 2016.
