“All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy.”
Following in the footsteps of other mature Batman projects like Arkham Knight and the director’s cut of Batman v Superman, the latest DC direct-to-video animated film, Batman: The Killing Joke, will be rated R.
“From the start of production, we encouraged producer Bruce Timm and our team at Warner Bros. Animation to remain faithful to the original story — regardless of the eventual MPAA rating,” revealed Sam Register, president of Warner Bros. Animation & Warner Digital Series, in a statement to Entertainment Weekly. “The Killing Joke is revered by the fans, particularly for its blunt, often-shocking adult themes and situations. We felt it was our responsibility to present our core audience — the comics-loving community — with an animated film that authentically represented the tale they know all too well.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LvEZa_dY4Sc
The Killing Joke, written by Alan Moore in 1988, is one of the most celebrated Batman stories of all time. Often considered to be the definitive Joker origin story, the graphic novel features disturbing themes and imagery as the Joker attempts to drive Commissioner Gordon insane. The story is dark, frightening, and deserving of its restricted rating.
The film will be produced by Batman: The Animated Series creator Bruce Timm, and will feature the voice talents of veterans Kevin Conroy as Batman, Mark Hamill as Joker, and Tara Strong as Barbara Gordon, each of whom also voiced the same characters for the animated series. So, think of the The Killing Joke as an R rated episode of Batman: The Animated Series. Excited yet?
Batman: The Killing Joke will premiere at Comic-Con this summer, and will release on home video shortly after.
