Who played the better Joker: Heath Ledger, or Jack Nicholson?

[DreamMerchant12]

Personally, I think it's a tie; Heath's joker brought out the dark & cynical side, but Jack's showed more of the happy-go-lucky and carefree side of the joker, and both did it extremely well. I also feel like if Heath hadn't died so young, people wouldn't write Jack's performance off so quickly but that in no way is discrediting how Heath played the Joker, as he was a beast in it. What do you guys think?

[4Corners]

Not even debatable.....

Heath Ledger

Nicholson was very good and for it's time, he was great.

But Ledger, you forgot it was an actor. He immersed himself so deep into that role.

Not even close IMHO and I'm a huge Nicholson fan. I think Nicholson is he GOAT in terms of resume. But Heath Ledger was the better joker by far.

[HughJass]

Love JN in the joker role

[CatchAndShoot]

Jack Nicholson's Joker is what I always picture Joker as. Ledger Joker isn't, but he fits into the Dark Knight Series, so I get that.

Really, I'm gonna say 50/50. JN Joker is the one I'm used to, and picture the actual Joker being. Ledger's Joker is the one I can picture in the Dark Knight Series.

[DeadLikeMe]

It's funny how the effects in Batman just blew people away back in '88 but now they just look so terrible. Yet movies like Star Wars, Aliens, The Thing, etc.
all still look reasonably good though.

[Twako]

Jack Nicholson's Joker is what I always picture Joker as. Ledger Joker isn't, but he fits into the Dark Knight Series, so I get that.

Really, I'm gonna say 50/50. JN Joker is the one I'm used to, and picture the actual Joker being. Ledger's Joker is the one I can picture in the Dark Knight Series.

best explanation. each has its own merits.

[4Corners]

Even if Nicholson was the more comedic Joker.....Heath still had classic comedic moments.

The Magic trick part, the hospital blowing up part, the "very poor choice of words" part when he throws Rachel out of the window, etc.

Nicholson was very good. But Ledger was almost....born to play that role. It was such a perfect casting job in the end, as well as just an immense job done by Ledger. I'm not going all out on this because he died either. If he was still alive, he deserved that Oscar IMO. It was one of the MUST SEE performances of the year, and he carried the GOAT comic book movie IMO.

It's not to discredit Nicholson's performance, which was very good. This is a case of GREAT vs VERY GOOD.

[ELHURACAN58]

Jack Nicholson's joker is more similar to the animated tv series, or should I say vice versa as I was writing this I searched and found this:

-The series took influence from Tim Burton's live-action films Batman (1989) and Batman Returns (1992), and the acclaimed Superman theatrical cartoons produced by Fleischer Studios in the early 1940s.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batman:...nimated_Series

Meanwhile Ledger's joker is more similar to the Comics:

-He was also given Batman: The Killing Joke and Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, which he "really tried to read and put it down."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Dark_Knight_(film)

So in the end, Nicholson developed a different indentity for the Joker, while Ledger tried to stay true to its original version. Whose is better? The real answer is: it depends on what the Joker should be like to you.

[DannYankee]

Jack did a more cartoonish fun superficial Joker role . Heath Ledger's Joker transcends the superficial funny murderer aspect, and is an A+ super-villain because of Ledger's great performance that gave the character everything it demanded and more in that movie.

[TBear]