SUICIDE SQUAD - The Joker's Tattoos and Teeth Tell a Story That Are "Absolutely Canon"
A lot of people seem have to warmed up to Jared Leto's version of the Joker in Suicide Squad since his look was first revealed. In the beginning, though, a lot of fans didn't seem to care for the look, and there are still fans who feel the same way. Over the past few months, we've learned bits and pieces about the Joker, and today we have some interesting new information to share with you.
During an interview with Yahoo!, director David Ayer talked about the villain and explained the meaning of his tattoos, how they tell a story about his past, why this Joker is so different from other versions, and what makes him a "working class" villain. About the tattoos the director said:
"A lot of it has to do with creating a character with some kind of history and footprint in our world. And not have this sacrosanct being outside of our continuum, our reality. If a guy like him really existed today, where would he come from? How would he do business? Who would he know? What would he look like? In my mind, I took a lot of inspiration from drug lords on Instagram. It’s a great way to understand the lifestyle of a villain."
There's a lot more to his tattoos than that, though. They aren't their for superficial reasons. They tell a story and if people look into them, they will gain a better understanding of the character. Ayer explains:
"The tattoos tell a very specific story. And eventually people will decipher them and understand what’s going on, but obviously they’re contentious, any time you do something new it’s contentious. There’s very specific stories and easter eggs in those tattoos. And even his teeth, there’s an entire story behind that which is absolutely canon. It’s putting his history on his body. This Joker is a little more working class, who I believe could live in our world."
You may like that explanation, you may not, but that's the unique direction that the director is taking the character, and I personally think it's going to end up being something unexpectedly awesome. Who knows, this joker could very well end up just blowing people's minds just like Heath Ledger's did.
Ayer was then asked to elaborate on Leto's decision to go method, and he, once again, praised the actor's performance, saying:
"With Jared, it’s tough for him. He constantly has to give birth to himself, he goes away, he comes back, he shoots, he goes away… The Joker is something you have to be, and you can see how exhausting and painful it is for him to be this character. But you can feel it when he comes to work, the crew feels it, everyone feels it. It’s like the birds stop flying. He’s fucking terrifying."
Suicide Squad will be released on August 5th and it can't get here soon enough!