When it comes to one of the most iconic tales in the history of comic books being made into an animated film, it needs to be done right. Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has taken on the task of making an animated version of Batman: The Killing Joke , and if they get it wrong, fans are simply going to riot. The first official clip has been released from the film, and it certainly seems as if they know exactly what they are doing.
It was back in early April that the first look of Batman: The Killing Joke was given as producers and animators spoke about the film. Since then, it’s been revealed that the movie will be rated-R and fans already knew that Mark Hamill will voice The Joker while Kevin Conroy steps in as Batman.
DC All Access has now released the first-ever official clip from the movie, and it may be needless to say, but it’s simply incredible. Set for release on DVD and Blu-ray on August 2, it can be pre-ordered already and it’s actually going to screen in limited theaters nationwide for one night only on July 25, 2016.
After seeing this clip, it’s even more difficult to sit back and wait for The Killing Joke because DC Comics and Warner Bros. have simply outdone themselves. There is a bit of talking in the video below, but if you want to just see the clip, then skip ahead to the 3:56 mark.
As you can see from the clip, it’s as if they picked up the graphic novel and simply put it right into the animation department and said, “Don’t change a single thing.”
One thing has been changed, though, and Collider pointed out that it’s the very shaky animation style that was originally seen in the first-look from April. The animation jumped around a bit and made it almost very hard to keep watching.
Now, the animation has gotten much smoother and it’s been altered slightly to look more like that of the graphic novel by Brian Bolland and Alan Moore.
It’s really difficult to not get excited over the animated film version of Batman: The Killing Jokeas it’s one of the most well-known stories in comic history.
This is one tale that is extremely dark and delves into territories that most comic books don’t dare go into. It can be quite disturbing at times, and now there will be a tremendous prologue that will introduce the world to Barbara Gordon as she goes through life as Batgirl.
From there, it turns very dark, very demented, and makes the twisted mind of The Joker come to life.
Many wonder if this could lead to numerous other big-time stories being turned into animated home releases if The Killing Jokeproves to be a success. By the looks of the first clip, it has no choice but to be one.
Along with Hamill as The Joker and Conroy as Batman, Ray Wise will voice Commissioner James Gordon while Tara Strong stars as Barbara Gordon/Batgirl. That one night only in theaters won’t be the first showing as those at the San Diego Comic-Con 2016 will get the first look.
If by some chance the animated film version of Batman: The Killing Joke turns out to be a bomb, fans will never let Warner Bros. live it down. When the first sneak peek was released a few months ago, there were some issues with how it was being presented, fans let their feelings known, and those problems have been fixed as the new clip shows. With Mark Hamill and Kevin Conroy on board as the voices and the fans being “consulted,” it’s going to be hard to screw this up.
[Image via DC Comics]