Do you know that Joker actor Joaquin Phoenix was also considered for Batman role in Darren Aronofsky's canceled project

Actor Joaquin Phoenix took the film Joker to a new level by his superlative acting. Already, a bar was set by Heath Ledger in the same role in the 2008 film The Dark Knight. It was a huge task for Joaquin to surpass the bar set by Heath Ledger. Instead of copying Heath, Joaquin owned the role in his own way and gave it a new touch. His version of Joker is a sad reality of an individual. The film was a blockbuster hit and Joaquin won the Oscar as Best Actor for this film. But do you know that if everything fell in place, he would have played the role of Joker's counterpart Batman? Yes, you heard it right. Director Darren Aronofsky wanted to cast Joaquin in his version of Batman.

Earlier, Warner Brothers have approached Darren to direct the Batman franchise. Somehow, the project didn't materialize. When it was in talking stages, Darren wanted to sign up Joaquin in the role of Batman. The director himself revealed the news in an interview with the Empire magazine. He said that the studio wanted to cast Freddie Prinze Jr and he wanted Joaquin Phoenix. He further added that his version of Batman was very different in what they ended up making. Darren Aronofsky wanted to give a darker touch to the role of Batman. He got inspired by the Batman and Robin series to make his films. He wanted to reinvent the franchise by taking nods from films like Death Wish, The French Connection and Taxi Driver.