Heath Ledger's diary and self-imposed isolation were vital to his preparation. To truly become the Joker, Heath Ledger chose to isolate himself from the rest of the world for months at a time, locking himself in his apartment or hotel room to iron out the finer details of the character.
Fans will recall Ledger's Joker frenetically licking his lips like a demented lizard, which serves as a constant reminder of the horrific story behind the scars. The unnerving lizard reflex undoubtedly adds something valuable to the character, but it wasn't a scripted action.
Feb. 6, 2008 — -- Actor Heath Ledger died after overdosing on a cocktail of six prescription drugs that included painkillers and anti-anxiety medication, the New York City medical examiner's office ruled today.
He had struggled with abuse of prescription drugs and crippling insomnia for years, issues that would take the shine off his incredible Hollywood career. In 2006 he said he used to smoke "smoke five joints a day for 20 years". The year before his death, Heath told of his battle with insomnia, which he'd had for years.
Batman reappears and engages the Joker a second time in a far more violent fight, in which the Joker hysterically stabs him in the stomach several times. Mid-stab, Batman instinctively breaks the Joker's neck just enough to paralyze him. Joker laughing his last laugh while he snaps his own neck.
The above-mentioned characteristics make the Joker's laughing episodes compatible at first sight with the pseudobulbar affect, a clinical entity characterized by episodes of exaggerated or involuntary expression of emotions, including uncontrolled laughing or crying.
Ledger Has More Than Some Jokes
This Joker is conniving, and while he makes some funny quips at the expense of Gambol and Batman, he does not simply rely upon the persona of a cackling annoyance who commits a petty crime and then makes a slew of lame jokes.
In interviews that would be scrutinized exhaustively after his death, the actor admitted that the Joker role had been difficult for him and that he had been using prescription drugs to manage recurring bouts of stress and insomnia.
While in Arkham City, Batman was ambushed by Clayface (disguised as Joker) and knocked out by Harley Quinn. After he woke up, Batman discovered that Joker suffered from a horrible side effect of Titan which gave him a fatal disease that progressively killed him.
The Joker arguably has the largest single body count of any villain in the DCU. Cheshire, Mongul, Black Adam and the Secret Society of Super Villains have all devastated entire cities, but the Joker probably has killed the most people in single acts.
In fact, sleep is a key theme in The Joker: Devil's Advocate, and the criminal clown says at one point: “It was hours before the screaming stopped. I almost didn't get to sleep that night.” This suggests that not only does he sleep, but that getting some shuteye is important to him.
Following DC Comics 2011 relaunch of several of its comic series for The New 52, Detective Comics #1 (November 2011) sees the Joker captured by Batman and sent to Arkham Asylum; unbeknownst to Batman, this is part of the Joker's plan to meet with the villain Dollmaker, who surgically removes Joker's face at his request ...
But before he can do so, a gunshot interrupts the fight -- and Joker gets hit right in the face. The shot actually comes from Harley Quinn who, in Batman #99, showed that she was willing to put the Joker down -- permanently. Her shot doesn't kill Joker, but it does take out his right eye, and it's no accident.
According to director Matt Reeves, he was born that way. "It's like Phantom of the Opera," Reeves explained to Variety. "He has a congenital disease where he can't stop smiling and it's horrific. His face is half-covered through most of the film." This adds a new dimension to the character of The Joker.
STI: According to Joker, Harley has HPV, though so do most sexually active adults.
Harley Quinn, born Harleen Frances Quinzel, was a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum who was turned into an insane criminal and girlfriend of the Joker.
There was no mention of the Joker ever having had a wife and his lifestyle choices (as documented by Batman) certainly didn't support that one. In Batman: The Three Jokers, the "Comedian" is shown having hallucinations or fantasies that Jeannie is alive and their son are living with him.
During the shooting of his last completed film, The Dark Knight, Ledger told The New York Times in November that he often took the prescribed sleeping aid, Ambien, in an attempt to coax himself into a slumber. “Last week I probably slept an average of two hours a night,” he told The Times.
The last person to see Ledger alive was his housekeeper, Teresa Solomon, who arrived at the apartment around 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, according to police.
Even at a young age, the actor struggled with anxiety issues. Unfortunately, Ledger began to smoke on set to help cope. It became such an issue that a producer had to talk to him about it. Although he was told that he needed to stop, Ledger refused to comply.