In a post sent out on his official Twitter account yesterday, Mark Hamill announced that he will finally be stepping away from the second biggest role of his life, Batman’s biggest arch nemesis, The Joker.
“Hello/Goodbye Joker!” wrote Hamill. “I’ve enjoyed every minute behind the wheel of the Crown Prince’s crazy car- I’m going to miss him more than I can say!!”
This makes Batman: Arkham City, which released just two days ago, his final appearance in the role. Hamill has played The Clown Prince of Crime for nearly 20 years, a reoccurring role that got its start when “Batman: The Animated Series” began back in 1992.
Hamill had been teasing a departure from the role after Arkham City for over the past year, musing in an interview with GameSpot at San Diego Comic Con 2010, “I keep saying that…”
Though the post is legitimate, it may not truly be the absolute end for Hamill’s Joker. The actor stated that if there was ever an opportunity for him to voice an adaptation of a certain famous comic where the character paralyzes Barbara Gordon and tortures her father, Commissioner Gordon, he would jump all over it.
“If I do 1 last performance as The Joker, hope it’s The Killing Joke!!!” said Hamill again from his Twitter account in July.
Apparently, Hamill initially didn’t want to do Arkham City after Batman: Arkham Asylum had become a major success, stating that he wanted the character to go out on a high note. It appears, however, based on the critical reception of Arkham City, Hamill will still be able to do just that.
[Twitter]
