Suicide Squad’s Joker “Is Not” Jason Todd

It’s amazing what fan speculation can do to your expectations. For an example, let’s use Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and actress Jena Malone. Before her scenes were cut from the finished product, fans speculated what character she was going to play. Some thought she’s Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, while others assumed she’d be Carrie Kelley/Robin. Hell, some were speculating that she might be Poison Ivy. However, when we saw the extended cut of the film, she turned out to be neither of those characters. Malone was just portraying some random, obscure Flash character from the 60’s that people had forgotten about. What was the purpose of hiding it? The fans may never know.

Well, something similar happened in regards to Suicide Squad. Upon the official photo release, fans began wondering if Jared Leto’s version of The Joker would be Jason Todd. For the uninitiated, Jason Todd was another Robin that Batman took in, who was brutally murdered by The Joker. After being resurrected in the Lazarus pit, Todd went crazy and became The Red Hood. He was just like Batman… if Batman was a bloodthirsty, murdering sociopath. In the Arkham games, Todd became The Arkham Knight, instead of The Red Hood.

Now, there was a ton of evidence to support the theory, mainly regarding the tattoos on The Joker’s body. There were wings on his arm, reminiscent of a robin. A “J” was tattooed under The Joker’s eye, the same tattoo worn by Jason Todd in the Batman: Arkham Knight video game. But perhaps the biggest evidence were the tattoos in general. The Joker doesn’t strike me as someone who could sit still long enough to get all of those tattoos. If he were the rebellious Jason Todd, this would make more sense. It also wouldn’t be the first time that one of Batman’s sidekicks became the clown prince of crime. Dick Grayson became another version of The Joker in The Dark Knight Strikes Again. Even Tim Drake became The Joker in Batman Beyond: Return Of The Joker.

However, it seems all of the speculation can finally be put to rest. Writer & Director of Suicide Squad, David Ayer, dropped the ball in a recent interview with Comicbookmovie.com. When asked what a ridiculous rumor was regarding the film, Ayer had this to say;

“That the Joker is Jason Todd. It ain’t the case. He’s not.”

You can watch the video below. Ayer turns down the rumor at the 3:26 mark.

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSSNk5FZ2Jg[/embedyt]

So, there you have it. It comes straight from the words of the writer/director that Jared Leto’s Joker is not Jason Todd. In a way, I’m a little disappointed because after hearing that Willem Dafoe had been casted in Justice League, I had high hopes that Dafoe would be the real Joker. Looks like my anticipation just got shattered. As a result, I’m still bummed about the look of The Joker in the long run. I haven’t been a fan of the crackhead, tattooed douchebag look since the arrival of the first trailer last year. However, I am also very hopeful of Jared Leto’s performance. I guess we’ll see how it goes.

You can read the official synopsis for Suicide Squad below, which arrives in theaters August 5, 2016.

“It feels good to be bad…Assemble a team of the world’s most dangerous, incarcerated Super Villains, provide them with the most powerful arsenal at the government’s disposal, and send them off on a mission to defeat an enigmatic, insuperable entity. U.S. intelligence officer Amanda Waller has determined only a secretly convened group of disparate, despicable individuals with next to nothing to lose will do. However, once they realize they weren’t picked to succeed but chosen for their patent culpability when they inevitably fail, will the Suicide Squad resolve to die trying, or decide it’s every man for himself?”

[embedyt] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69uJpvc8ZcQ[/embedyt]

Adam Seebach

A graduate of Full Sail University with a Bachelors Degree in Creative Writing, Adam is a Writer and Film Critic, looking to make his mark on the world. When he isn’t at the movies, writing for The Nerd Stash, playing Duck Hunt (respect the classics) or delivering pizzas to his neighbors, he is back at school earning his Masters Degree in Film Production.