‘Batman 2’: Will Barry Keoghan return to the franchise as the Joker? The new production report closes the debate

New industry reports suggest that Barry Keoghan will appear as the Joker in the next ‘Batman’ film starring Robert Pattinson as the vigilante.

Since Robert Pattinson last confirmed that the filming of ‘Batman 2’ is all set and ready to begin, fans have been waiting for more updates. Amidst the wait, there has also been much debate over whether some familiar faces will reprise their roles, including Barry Keoghan.

Will Barry Keoghan reprise his role as the Joker in ‘Batman 2’?

Keoghan last appeared in a small cameo in 2022’s ‘Batman’, since the first film was about Batman going up against the Riddler to save Gotham City. Now, according to a new report shared by Box Office Pro France, the actor will soon reprise his role in the film. In what capacity he will appear is still something that has not been revealed yet.Reports shared that the production house, which is behind the development of ‘Batman’ and ‘Batman 2’, confirmed the news during one of their presentations at the Studio Show, where production houses come to share their future projects. For the next film, reports suggest that the film’s main villain will fall to the infamous Victor Zasaj and will also feature the Court of Owls secret society alongside Harvey Dent.Keoghan appears briefly at the end of the 2022 film after The Riddler is imprisoned in Arkham Prison. The scene shows him in prison, making a new friend, who turns out to be Keoghan’s Joker. It has been predicted that Joker could be the main focus of a possible third film in the franchise.

Barry Keoghan wants to return as Joker in ‘The Batman 2’

The actor, while talking about the opportunity in 2024 shared that he would love to reprise the role if the opportunity presents itself. Appearing on the ‘Happy Sad Confused’ podcast, the Irish star shared that, “It’s a big one, but I’m going to say that if the opportunity comes, yes, I’d love to explore, and if given the opportunity, really dive into it, but I haven’t been contacted, I haven’t heard anything.“Matt Reeves, who directed the first film and is also taking over the second, spoke to Digital Spy in an old interview about how much he liked Keohane’s take on the Joker. She shared at the time that, “Barry is a great actor. He’s very, very special. One of the things we talked about a lot was the idea that his worldview was shaped by the fact that he was born deformed. It was like a cruel joke that life was playing on him.“

About ‘The Batman 2’

Currently, the second installment of the series stars Robert Pattinson, Scarlett Johansson, Sebastian Stan, Colin Farrell, Andy Serkis, Jeffrey Wright, Charles Dance, Jaime Lawson, Gil Perez-Abraham, Sebastian Koch and Brian Tyree Henry. ‘The Batman 2’ is all set to release on October 1, 2027.