Heath Ledger was always one of my favorite actors long before his iconic role in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight (10 Things I Hate About You, anyone?), but its obvious that his turn as the Joker in TDK was one of, if not the most amazing roles he'd ever performed. So it's cool to see this glimpse into his process making the internet rounds again, as his father, Kim, shows a documentary film crew Ledger's Joker diary, which he used as a tool to prepare for the role.

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Anyone who thinks the next film incarnation of the Joker will be a disaster, take heart: Jared Leto's right there with you. Kind of.

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No, that's not Heath Ledger's Joker about to pop a pencil in your eye. It's a statue of Heath Ledger's Joker about to pop a pencil in your eye by Bobby Causey. Yeah. I know. I'm frightened, too. Other statues, including David from The Lost Boys, Hellboy, and Christopher Reeve's Superman, are behind the cut.

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Michael Uslan grew up on Batman and after being disappointed with his debut on the small screen in the 60s, he made it his goal to bring a better Batman to life. He acquired the film rights in 1979 but it took him ten years to make his dream come true with 1989's Batman. Since then, he's produced every Batman film and has some perspective to share as it pertains to controversial casting decisions.

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A video excerpt from the documentary "Too Young To Die" has recently made its way online. It features Heath Ledger's father, Kim Ledger, flipping through a research diary the actor put together for his role as the Joker in The Dark Knight. There's a French translation over the entire thing so we've included the transcription after the jump.

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Are they taking nominations for the MacArthur Fellows Program? We only ask because the person who made this series of mashup photos combining the Christopher Nolan and Tim Burton Batman films is a genius of the highest order. Behance.net user Butcher Billy is the one behind this particular set of wonders, and we'd need Joker gas to smile more than we have at their work.

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So, you're going to start watching this, figure out the general premise and go, "Ok, that's cute." Then you're going to keep watching and think, "Huh. That was pretty clever." But by the time you get to the end you're going to be as convinced as we are that this is the BEST IDEA TO HAPPEN ON THE INTERNET (at least this week.) The execution is flawless. Seriously. After watching, I sat here for ten minutes wondering how to present it you all and was still left blown away. The awesomeness of this video CANNOT BE CONTAINED. Just stop reading and watch it now! (via tipster Jessica from movieclipsTRAILERS) Are you following The Mary Sue on Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Pinterest, & Google +?

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In 2001, we were graced with the presence that was A Knight's Tale. The story of a peasant posing as a knight in the 14th century, an alternate 14th century of sorts, where David Bowie and other modern musical acts exist just so Lords and Ladies could dance jauntily at court. It starred Heath Ledger, Shannyn Sossamon, and Rufus Sewell, and it was delightfully terrible/amazing. The only logical thing to do is make a television drama based on it over ten years later, right? What I'd like to know is, why hasn't Battlestar Galactica's Ron Moore been attending our Knight's Tale fan club meetings? 

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So would this make me a biotic? (via Kotaku.)

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We may never know for sure if director Christopher Nolan would have utilized the Joker in The Dark Knight Rises had actor Heath Ledger not passed away but we can certainly wonder what it would have been like. Did you notice any reference to the Clown Prince of Crime in TDKR? There's an interesting tidbit you might have missed. 

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The untimely death of Heath Ledger was shocking and sad not least because he was so young but also because he impressed so much in his work. Whether it was industry insiders or fans, like myself, who'd grown up with him as a reliable hartthrobby leading man and were eager to watch him take the Joker to places we'd never seen the character before in cinema, there were a lot of people who felt that a historic acting career had been cut short just as it was starting to hit its stride. And, okay, I'm a little ashamed to say that one of my other immediate thoughts was to wonder how this would affect The Dark Knight and the movies that came after it, and how Christopher Nolan's uncompromising commitment to his stories and their thematic arcs would conflict with the desire to do right by a colleague now gone. Nolan himself talked to Empire about how the Joker will affect The Dark Knight Rises, and the rest is going behind the cut for those who don't want that question answered until they actually see the movie. So if you're one of those people don't read past this point.

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For many superhero fans, Kevin Conroy is THE Batman. Although he's only ever voiced the character, he's held onto the role for over twenty years now and has become synonymous with the caped crusader. At the premiere of the latest Warner Home Video feature, Justice League: Doom, we got a chance to speak with the seasoned actor about his long run with the character, how he sees Batman, and how voice acting for video games like Batman: Arkham City, is a lot harder that it would appear.

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Is laughter really the best medicine? Not when two Jokers meet!

What would happen if the goofy, light-hearted Joker of the 1966 Batman TV show, played by veteran actor Cesar Romero, had a conversation with the psychopathic terrorist Joker of 2008's The Dark Knight, played by the late Heath Ledger? Would they exchange tips on deadly hand buzzers and dapper purple suits? Compare knives and bow ties? Mayhaps a supervillain team-up that would bring Gotham to its knees? Or maybe Heath Ledger Joker would skin Cesar Romero Joker and wear him like a Cesar Suit?

Let's eavesdrop on some actual dialogue from their respective takes on the Clown Prince of Crime!

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How do you make the Joker creepier than he already is? Make him a toddler! Truly, somewhere, for whatever reason, someone thought making a 1/6 scale baby doll that resembles Heath Ledger's Joker from Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight was a good idea. You may be asking yourself, "is this an actual thing?" All answers point to yes, dear readers, and yes, that is a diaper in his duffle bag. 

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Geoff Boucher has an interview with Christopher Nolan about his Superman project in today's LA Times where the acclaimed director very carefully says absolutely nothing of substance about his Superman project.

Asked if Superman as a franchise has to overcome a deficiency of truly great villains, unlike, say, Spider-Man and Batman, he won’t bite. “That’s a very sly way of asking a question I’m not going to answer.”

Touché, Mr. Nolan, touché.  However, he did say a number of definitive things about his third Batman movie, which is currently in the script-writing stage:

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