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Thursday, Sep 2, 2010 |
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Sponsor & Host
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Roger Stoneburner : All Joking Aside (Ctnd)
-- Wednesday September 18th, 2002
As with the process of making any role come to life, the transition of the Joker from page to screen takes a lot of work. Beyond the preparation, the reading of the script, and getting suited up in his costume and wig, what else did Roger Stoneburner have to do next to fully become the Clown Prince of Gotham himself?
"Brian [Robbins], the director, came up to me after shooting the 'shooting' scene and asked me to say some lines. I thought they were just doing foley (recording the dialogue for voice-over) but I think they must have been shooting me doing the dialogue as well." But hang on a minute -- all the Birds of Prey enthusiasts who have been scoping the internet for the latest news know by now that Mark Hamill, who voiced The Joker in the animated Batman cartoon, has provided his twangy vocals again for the white-faced lunatic. "Later, I had time to read the sides and saw what they wanted, a different voice with a laugh and I just thought to myself, 'Ooh, I blew that one.' I read it a little dry and evil rather than high-pitched and eerie. My laugh is too deep to sound anything like Mark Hamill's voice." After producers and foley artists watched the pilot, they matched Hamill's recorded voice to Stoneburner's mouthing for the finished product. Stoneburner even believes that they may have done some work using computer graphics imaging techniques to make his mouth move the proper way - a strange process for a stuntman to be involved in, albeit a "fascinating" one. And so the scenes started to come together. The flashbacks of Batman, Batgirl and the Joker in the underground lair and at Barbara's apartment were all shot during the last two days of filming in the spring of 2002. Although the atmosphere was hectic as the cast and crew rushed to finish their work as well as being under the stress of not knowing whether or not the show would be liked by WB executives or picked up for the fall, "everyone working were all pro ... people were pretty excited about it," says the stuntman. "A gal whose boyfriend works on BoP ... she told me that they have reshot almost the entire pilot episode!" Fans of the upcoming series who have read the interviews with actress Dina Meyer and the producers will know the changes they mentioned - redesigning the Clocktower lair to include a brighter, less gothic scheme, including a switch from black computers to silver ones as well as a lightening of the entire show - demanded a reshoot of most of the footage. Not to mention the recasting of Mia Sara as Harley Quinn, which meant entire scenes had to be redone with the new actress. However, Stoneburner "[keeps] hearing nothing but good stuff about the newer episodes they're shooting." We can't wait to see what the future has in store for us.
With news of the changes from a darker, Burton-based gothic look to a more Schumacher-esque feel for the series, many fans are in an uproar with the disappointment that 'Batman Forever' and 'Batman and Robin' garnered. Is the style just too much of a departure from the gloom-and-doom of the Dark Knight fans have come to know and love? Although Roger has yet to see Schumacher's turn at the helm of Batman, he has nothing but praise for Tigerland : "It had a great, gritty look to it. I was actually hoping [the series] would stay dark and gloomy. ... I think it could still be that way when certain characters come into play." But, as he rightly points out, the network is trying to appeal to a wider audience, rather than just the diehard fans. "I really loved that dank look to 'Dark City', but I doubt a show like that would ever make it on primetime TV. That's family hour, parents don't want their kids having nightmares during school." Still, Stoneburner maintains high hopes for the show after seeing a copy of the pilot given to him by Eli McElmurray, webmaster of the DC Live Action Universe website. "I thought it was great, a TV show shot like a movie. It was reminiscent of 'The Matrix' and 'Dark City'. I think the producers and creators have a very tough job of trying to please the die-hard comic books fans as well as being appealing to the mainstream audience. After all, it's a business and if the mainstream doesn't take to it, it gets pulled."
With his recent turn as The Joker, does Stoneburner see a future doing more work in the world of superheros? "Until now I have been pretty unaware of all the comic book characters. Now with Spiderman, Daredevil and a zillion other comic book-to-film franchises going on, I'm finding it more and more interesting." Rumors abound about casting of villains for the next Spiderman film - and as fans know, The Kingpin is bald. Perhaps a new role for Roger? "I just finished doubling an actor on the show 'Angel.' His character was the Eater Demon, and had a big rancid-looking mouth, like something out of The Thing. Next week I'm doubling a guy on 'Push, Nevada' and after that I'm doing some cinematography on a dark short film for a big Irish actor friend of mine." Perhaps they'll still be casting when Stoneburner finishes this. Despite the difficulties of stepping into the shoes of the great Jack Nicholson to play The Joker, Stoneburner says with a smile, "I can't compare myself to that guy! Except, I can probably party like him. ... I'll stick to stunting and let him get the Academy Award." So if not a trophy or award for his work, what was the best part of the entire experience for him?
"Oh ... the hot chalupas who are the heros." We couldn't agree more, Roger.
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