Barry Keoghan's brother, Eric, may have accidentally spoiled the actor's role in The Batman by confirming his casting as Joker.
In a now-deleted exchange, Eric Keoghan responded to a rumor that Barry Keoghan would play the Joker, saying, "So it's finally out My Brother playing the JOKER in the new Batman Unreal Stuff." While this is far from official confirmation, the rumor Barry Keoghan is playing Joker does align with a number of rumors surrounding The Batman's villains and the actor's role. Still, take this claim with a grain of salt.
In 2020, Keoghan joined The Batman, with Warner Bros. confirming his character as Gotham City Police Department officer Stanley Merkel. Created by Frank Miller, Merkel first appeared in canonically in 1987's Batman #405, where he served as Jim Gordon's partner. Merkel was later killed by Sofia Falcone/Hangman. If this rumor does prove true, there's no indication of just how The Batman will approach Merkel and his connection to Joker.
Keoghan is an Irish actor known for his roles in such movies as Dunkirk and The Killing of a Sacred Deer, both of which were released in 2017. Keoghan is no stranger to comic book adaptations. In 2018, Keoghan was cast as protagonist Yorick Brown in the live-action adaptation of Y: The Last Man. However, he left that series in 2020. Most recently, Keoghan played Druig in Eternals.
Created by Bill Finger, Bob Kane and Jerry Robinson, The Joker first appeared in 1940's Batman #1. A criminal mastermind, The Joker is generally considered one of Batman's most fearsome foes. The character has been played by, among others, Heath Ledger, Joaquin Phoenix and Jack Nicholson in live-action.
There's still a lot of mystery surrounding The Batman at this time. Currently, we know that the movie will follow Batman during his second year as a crime fighter and his investigation into a serial killer known as the Riddler. Along the way, he'll encounter such classic Batman characters as Selina Kyle/Catwoman, Carmine Falcone and Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin.
While DC Extended Universe actor Ben Affleck was initially slated to reprise his role as Bruce Wayne in The Batman, he left the project in 2019. Later that year, Robert Pattinson was cast in the role. Initially, The Batman was slated to release in 2021. However, the project was delayed as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Following the release of The Batman, a spin-off TV series focused on the Gotham City Police Department will release on HBO Max.
Directed by Matt Reeves, The Batman is set to release on March 4, 2022.
Source: Culture Crave; Via: GameRant