The Killing Joke is not a happy story. It’s one of the darkest stories in mainstream comics, both in its themes and its execution. The story is about how just one bad day can destroy a human being and warp them in to something inhuman. This idea applies to both Batman and Joker as both suffered great tragedy and emerged from it as extreme personalities.
So, when it was finally announced that the legendary graphic novel would be adapted into an animated film, fans had to wonder if some of the content would have to be watered down to comply with the PG-13 rating that DC animated films normally carry. This is in contrast to the problem DC animated films normally face, where to warrant the PG-13 rating, films would add in unnecessary language and violence into stories that at times felt out of place and would detract from the story. Some of these films warranted the rating such as The Dark Knight Returns, Batman under the Red Hood and Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox but others like Batman/Superman Public Enemies, Justice League War and Batman vs Robin tried to force more adult aspects into their story in an unnatural manner resulting in tone-ally inconsistent films.
However, at New York Comic Con, producer and animator John Tucker announced that he was given permission by DC to make the film as a rated R project. This was later released via Twitter by Disney Blog Stitch Kingdom, but was later revealed to be a misquote as John Tuck himself took to Twitter to state that he was not directing the film and that the rating wouldn’t be decided for some time to come as the film is still in pre-production at this time.
Basically, it all comes down to this: From the information we have, DC is open to the idea of The Killing Joke being R-rated, which means that it probably will if it stays true to the source material. Without getting into spoilers, I find it hard to believe that a film with such terrifying violence both on-screen and implied with the sexual context of the torture inflicted on certain characters would garner anything less than an R rating. One thing can be certain is that if this film is to live up to its source material, it will have to push the boundaries of DC Animated film further than it’s ever has been before and if successful it could result in more adaptations of DCs darkest storylines.
What do you think, DC fans? Should it be rated R? Sound off below!