He's known for playing the iconic Green Goblin in Spider-Man. But now, it looks like Willem Dafoe is ready to jump ship and join the DC universe.
In an interview with British GQ, the Oscar-nominated actor said he has "fantasized" about putting his spin on the ultimate comic-book villain - the Joker.
Dafoe recently re-joined the ranks of super-villain royalty by reprising his Green Goblin role in Marvel's smash-hit Spider-Man: No Way Home.
The 66-year-old actor has clearly gotten a taste for the genre. While chatting about his reputation for playing bad guys, he said he had an idea for a Batman flick where he would play the infamous villain's imposter.
"There is something interesting about, like, if there was a Joker imposter. So it would be possible to have not dueling Jokers but someone that [claims] to be the Joker that isn’t the Joker," Dafoe said.
He went on to say that he'd particularly like to explore the storyline if it was Joaquin Phoenix's Joker who he was coming up against.
"That kind of opens up the possibility of an interesting story, particularly if you had Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker, and then you had someone who was either imitating or riffing off what he did."
"I fantasized about that. But other than that I am not talking to anybody [about it], you’re the first one," Dafoe added.
The idea will be music to fans' ears, who have long held Dafoe as a favorite to play Batman's iconic nemesis, and often fan-cast him as the Clown Prince of Crime in YouTube videos or social media posts.
If he were to take up the role of the Joker's imposter and don the iconic clown face paint, Dafoe would be in good company.
Over the years, the villain has been played by a slew of Oscar-winning actors including Jack Nicholson, Jared Leto, Heath Ledger, and Phoenix - the latter two winning their Academy Awards for their Joker performances.
It would also mean an extension of his already impressive comic-book filmography. As well as playing Green Goblin, Dafoe also appeared in Aquaman as mentor figure Nuidi Vulko.
Meanwhile, it could even mean he comes face to face with Robert Pattinson's Batman, after starring opposite the actor in 2019's The Lighthouse to critical acclaim.
The Batman starring Rober Pattinson and Zoe Kravitz is set for release in March 2022.
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