The Killing Joke

As the best-known Joker origin story, this one is a no-brainer. Most recently, Warner Bros. adapted it for the animated Batman: The Killing Joke. Unfortunately, that film was pretty disappointing.

The Killing Joke gave The Joker a tragic back story that changed the way fans looked at the character. It all began when the character decided to pursue a career as stand-up comedian, which turned out to lead nowhere. After that, he decided to join up with some low-level crooks and break into his old workplace (a chemical plant) as a way to support his family.

Little did he know that he was going to be made a patsy if things went south. And south they went when Batman appeared and assumed that The Joker was the gangleader (wearing a Red Hood). And the iconic scene unfolded.

Then the character's pregnant wife died. That was one bad day. And it turned out that it was all the studio needed to turn a rather hapless character into a famous supervillain.