WB has released the first trailer for their upcoming R-rated direct to home video feature film adaptation of Batman: The Killing Joke based on the classic Alan Moore and Brian Bolland graphic novel. Released in 1988, The Killing Joke was supposed to be an out-of-continuity original Batman graphic novel, but the fan response was so overwhelming that DC decided to make the story of Barbara Gordon’s crippling canon, resulting in her transition to the oracle until the launch of the New 52 in 2011.
The Killing Joke is without a doubt the most brutal Batman and Joker story every told, if for nothing else there are lot of the implied graphic details that I will not get into here. For anyone who has read this gruesome tale, it feels like Warner Bros has given us a faithful adaptation. Based on how the the first trailer is cut with a few slow moving shots and quick cuts it was pretty evident a lot had to be kept out of it to maintain it’s green band status.
How chilling was it to have the two most iconic superhero voice actors of our time Kevin Conroy (Batman) and Mark Hamill (Joker) in such a disturbing film setting? Sure they have done the the Batman The Animated Series, Mask of the Phantasm, and the Arkham game series but those pale in comparison to the horrific imagery and implications of The Killing Joke. It felt a bit odd hearing those iconic voices from my childhood come to life, when I know what the intense end result of this story will be. However I can not think of a better swan song for Conroy and Hamill (the voices most of us hear in our heads when we read Batman comics) than the iconic Killing Joke.
Please let us know what you thought about the trailer in the comments below or tweet me directly @thereelbradbell