There have been several incarnations of the Clown Prince of Crime across television, film, and comic books. Most have been attached to the Batman storyline and some, like 2019's Joker, have explored his origins apart from the Caped Crusader.
Joaquin Phoenix plays Arthur Fleck, a lonely, ostracized would-be comedian who simply wants to make the world laugh, but only incurs its derision for his troubles. The film is a soulful exploration of the struggles of mental illness in a society that itself struggles with socio-political turmoil and class warfare. To understand how the Joker was born, viewers must understand why he was made. Here are 10 tattoos only devoted fans will understand.
ALL I HAVE ARE NEGATIVE THOUGHTS
In Joker, Arthur Fleck is far from the typical protagonist. Victimized and ostracized by the citizens of Gotham, even as he tries desperately to bring a smile to their faces as a comedian, he's forced to undergo therapy as part of his mental health rehabilitation.
Early on in the film, his counselor derisively asks him if he's been having "negative thoughts," to which he responds, "All I have are negative thoughts," a sentiment captured perfectly by this powerful tattoo by Dave Paulo.
PUT ON A HAPPY FACE
Sometimes events in someone's life are so traumatic that it's necessary for them to take strength from a more dominant part of their personality. For Arthur Fleck, this dominant part was the persona of the Joker, who showed Fleck all his problems could make him happy, not sad.
In this enigmatic piece by Aakash Chandani, head artist at Skin Machine Tattoo Studio, the struggle between Arthur Fleck's personalities is clearly visible. In the center is Fleck, who simply wants a little human kindness from the world, and to either side of him are the two sides of the Joker, one whimsical, one homicidal.
I HOPE MY DEATH WILL MAKE MORE CENTS THAN MY LIFE
Throughout his life, Arthur Fleck has had the optimism beat out of him by society. It has made him cynical, jaded, and pessimistic. He scrawls his thoughts about his circumstances in his journal, which takes on a nihilistic tone by the time his therapist views it.
One line that leaps from the pages is, "I hope my death will make more cents than my life," indicative of his dark sense of humor. Perhaps in the death of Arthur Fleck and the birth of the Joker, he would finally get the recognition he deserved, as is so often the case with artists ahead of their time. This captivating shaded piece by Andrew Wilson conveys the starkness that often haunted Fleck's life.
JOKER IN ABSTRACT
Arthur Fleck begins Joker as a depressed man over 40, who works as a clown sign waver in Gotham City, with the occasional stint at the children's hospital performing for terminal patients. He ends the film as the progenitor of a massive class riot in which all of his followers wear clown masks.
Fleck touches the society around him in an influential way, despite the fact that in any other circumstance it would have dismissed him. Olli at The Aristocrat Tattoo captures the duality of his existence, begot by economic necessity, with this abstract dot piece.
TWO SIDES OF THE SAME JOKER
Until Joaquin Phoenix was cast in Joker, fans around the world thought Heath Ledger gave the definitive performance as the titular character. As of now, it's up to personal preference who should be crowned the Clown Prince of Crime, with each actor bringing something unique to the role.
Joker is an origin movie, and this tattoo by Isnard Barbosa depicting both Phoenix's and Ledger's Joker, is a beautiful combination of both characters' respective transformations (though Ledger's is only mentioned). Ledger's Joker is cutting his face, while Phoenix's Joker is physically turning his lip up into an exaggerated smile.
I USED TO THINK MY LIFE WAS A TRAGEDY
Arthur Fleck comes to a lot of realizations over the course of Joker, specifically centered on his life and how he chooses to live it. When he stops allowing himself to be a victim, he finds a force of will inside himself he never knew he had, and begins to decide his own fate.
This beautiful side profile shot by Marek Hali perfectly captures the conflict within Fleck, as he steadies himself for the backlash of the public that will assuredly come when he finds his own strength. He never would have anticipated that the populace of Gotham City would cheer him on.
SMILE
Once Arthur Fleck became the Joker, he seemed to understand things about the world he couldn't articulate before. After years of being beaten and abused by merciless strangers, he could finally put words to his pain, "You'll never understand the damage you did to someone until the same thing is done to you."
The Joker laughed to keep from crying, a sentiment perfectly captured in this piece posted by Redditor JK021797, based on an illustration by Dennis Baptiste. He smiled even as he threatened Bruce Wayne, shot his television idol during a live broadcasting, and even as the authorities were coming to take him away.
COMBO JOKER
For some Joker fans, there's no more definitive version of the Clown Prince than the animated incarnation (voiced by Mark Hamill) from Batman: The Animated Series. The aesthetic of that Joker was based on Jack Nicholson's portrayal in Tim Burton's 1989 classic Batman.
Beatrice Medina has combined the signature style of the '90s Joker with Arthur Fleck's striking orange and green ensemble. Even his clown-like face paint has been applied to the sharper, more aquiline features of the animated Joker.
JOKERS WILD
Joker was missing all the clown-themed gadgets that the Joker of the Batman comic books used to terrorize Gotham City. Since Joker was going for a more realistic origin story for the villain, he simply used handguns in place of guns that fired exploding teddy bears.
This fun, colorful piece by Eddie Greer depicts Arthur Fleck's Joker like the Joker in a deck of playing cards, smoking a cigarette and reaching for the gun in his waistband. The color scheme of green, yellow, and orange makes a particularly whimsical contrast.
LAUGH TO KEEP FROM CRYING
Much of the focus of Joker was on Arthur Fleck's mental illness which, had society been kinder about, might have been given proper treatment. He informed his counselor that the worst thing about having a mental illness was needing to pretend like you don't have it.
After he became the Joker, Fleck no longer needed to concern himself with making others feel comfortable by concealing his mental health issues. This beautiful piece by Kyle A. Scarborough captures him letting the world see him for who he really is, after suffering so long in silence.