The role of the Joker throughout the lifespan of Batman has always, or so the media would have us believe, been plagued. Since the 1950's when Batman was brought to our screens, different actors have played the Joker's character: Cesar Romero, Jack Nicholson, Mark Hamil (if only as a voice-over) and, of course, Heath Ledger but what really sparked off the stories about “The Curse of the Joker” again was the quote everyone heard from Jack Nicholson just after the untimely passing of Heath Ledger: “I warned him.”

Everyone immediately sprang to the conclusion that Nicholson was blaming the depressing and psychotic complexity of the Joker role on Ledger's death after experiencing the same emotions himself but perhaps the truth would be more easily seen if the whole interview with Nicholson had been reported.

The NY Times reported the death of Ledger as follows:

Heath Ledger thought landing the demanding role of the Joker was a dream come true - but now some think it was a nightmare that led to his tragic death.

Jack Nicholson, who played the Joker in 1989 - and who was furious he wasn't consulted about the creepy role - offered a cryptic comment when told Ledger was dead.

"Well," Nicholson told reporters in London early Wednesday, "I warned him."

It doesn't actually inform the reader what Nicholson was warning Heath about and so we naturally put 2 and 2 together and make a more interesting, attention grabbing 5. In fact Jack was warning not about the role of the Joker but about the use of a prescription sleeping drug - something which he also had in common with Heath.

I'm not saying the role in the film didn't have anything to do with events that occurred. Heath himself described the Joker as:

“a psychopathic, mass-murdering, schizophrenic clown with zero empathy ...

"I couldn't stop thinking. My body was exhausted, and my mind was still going."

but as for a curse? I'll let you decide.