Heath Ledger died months before The Dark Knight arrived in theaters in 2008. That meant the actor never got to see the response to his performance as The Joker, a role that saw him posthumously awarded the "Best Supporting Actor" Oscar the following year.
It's impossible to imagine anyone else playing the Clown Prince of Crime in the Christopher Nolan-helmed movie, especially as Ledger's interpretation of the Clown Prince of Crime has become nothing short of iconic.
Nolan did consider other actors for the role, including The Pianist, King Kong, and The Brutalist star Adrien Brody. Talking to Josh Horowitz, the Oscar winner admitted that while he met with the filmmaker, the role was never his.
"Oh no, I wasn't close. It was a role that I felt very suited to do," he says in the video below. "Heath did such a remarkable job in that movie. It was indelible. Such beautiful work. Any actor who has a degree of edge would like to delve into a character like that, especially with a filmmaker like Christopher Nolan who brought such a profound vision."
"Nobody was doing that at the time. There was nothing like that," Brody continued. "Christopher Nolan's work and what he gave actors in that was such a revelation. It was mind-blowing to see. That would have been such a dream role and I'm sure it was for Heath."
Asked if he would consider another comic book role, the actor didn't close the door on the possibility and revealed what he'd need from Marvel Studios to consider joining the MCU.
"Like I said, if I was presented with an opportunity to play an interesting character with a filmmaker that elevated me and gave me space to do something vastly different in that world, it sounds amazing," the Predators star explained. "You have this wonderful machine [with Marvel]. [They] know all the techniques and tools to stand behind these movies and they've done something I think is enormous."
"People love them. Who wouldn't want to be part of something beloved? It would take a tone I related to. It wouldn't be just to...you know."
After winning the "Best Actor" Oscar, Brody's career didn't take off in quite the way many people expected. Succession and The Brutalist have marked something of a resurgence for him and, while Brody doesn't need Marvel, it would be a thrill for fans to see what he could do in that space.
Whether he'd get the sort of creative freedom he wants is another matter and we've seen many actors (Mickey Rourke and Christopher Eccleston, for example) struggle in that respect.
You can hear Brody's comments in full below.