Films and media have featured clowns for as long as anyone can remember, mostly because they were extremely popular back in the day. While the main job of a joker is to make people laugh using gags and other shenanigans, most movies have shown them as evil, scary creatures of the dark. These films include IT, The Dark Knight, Clown, Terrifier, All Hallows' Eve, and many more.
However, just because the general public has changed their perception about jokers nowadays doesn't mean they're inherently wicked. Let's take a deep dive into the history of cinema and see the films that feature not-so-evil clowns.
10 Clowning Around - Sim
Clowning Around is a 1992 film about a young boy named Simon 'Sim' Gunner who wants to become a circus clown and entertain countless people. It's an Australian family film based on a novel titled Clowning Sim by David Martin.
The movie shows the adventure of young Sim as he follows his heart and uses the help of veteran funster Jack Merrick to achieve his goal of becoming a clown finally. The movie also has many famous actors, including Heath Ledger, who played the clown prince in The Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan.
9 Clowns & Robbers - Marvin
Clowns & Robbers is a fairly new comedy movie where Marvin, a birthday clown, isn't having the best time of his life at his job. Hence, the poor fellow decides to drop out of his family clowning business and join up with some clumsy robbers to get rich quickly.
Unfortunately for him, a heist isn't something he's an expert at, which results in him going to Mexico as he makes this journey with his new thief friends. Throughout the movie, Marvin's character isn't someone evil who wants to do something bad. Instead, Clowns & Robbers is about Marvin moving on and growing up as a person.
8 Hardly Working - Bo Hooper
It's time to look at a classic titled Hardly Working, a movie about jobless clown Bo Hooper who fails at being good at any work he gets. Hardly Working is a comedy and features famous comedian Jerry Lewis as the unemployed clown.
The entire movie shows Bo Hooper creating mess and chaos everywhere he goes until finally, he gets a stable job as a postal worker. Unfortunately for Bo, he discovers that he's somehow dating the daughter of his boss, who hates everyone in the mail carrier profession due to a hilarious past event.
7 Joker - Arthur Fleck
Joker came out in 2019 and became a surprise hit due to its amazing story and Joaquin Phoenix's performance as the clown prince. While the inclusion of this entry to the list can be debatable, here's why it is here. For most of the movie, Arthur Fleck isn't an evil character. Instead, he's just a party clown who aspires to be a stand-up comedian and be on the show with Murray Franklin.
His goals and ideas are as innocent as anyone who isn't inherently vicious. Arthur wants to live a normal life while dealing with his neurological disorder. But unfortunate events lead him to a dark path he never wanted to take.
6 Mera Naam Joker - Raju
Mera Naam Joker is one of the biggest classics of 1970 and comes from the land of India. While initially, the film was a critical and commercial failure, it soon became a cult classic thanks to the unique story and amazing acting. The film shows the story of a young kid who aspires to be a circus clown, just like his father, who died working as a clown.
There are three chapters in the film in which the main character Raju meets three different women and falls in love with them. Unfortunately, none of his relationships worked out the way he wanted to.
5 Scary Movie 2 - Clown
Scary Movie 2 comes from a time when parodies were extremely popular in the pop-culture. At the time, various funny parody films like Meet The Spartans, Epic Movie, Not Another Teen Movie, and others were quite hip.
Hence, Scary Movie 2 came out in the prime of parody movie hype and became pretty much a cult classic. The Clown in this film doesn't have a major role. However, the few minutes it has in the movie are one of the ridiculous moments in the entirety of Scary Movie 2.
4 The Simpsons Movie - Krusty
Krusty, the Clown, is one of the most popular characters in The Simpsons franchise. The popular joker's full name is Sir Herschel Shmoikel Pinchas Yerucham Krustofsky and has been a part of various Simpsons media since his debut. Krusty hosts The Krusty the Clown Show, which features Bart and Lisa's favorite, The Itchy & Scratchy Show.
The Simpsons version of the clown is inspired by Rusty Nails, who James H. Allen played in 1928. Krusty's life is also very similar to comedian Jerry Lewis, including their background, addictions, and career.
3 Son Of The Mask - Tim Avery
Tim Avery is the main protagonist of not so popular movieSon of the Mask. While The Mask isn't traditionally a joker, everything he does in the film has clown written all over it. Wikipedia describes a clown as "a person who wears a unique makeup-face and flamboyant costume, performing comedy in a state of open-mindedness."
Hence, The Mask is a clown in every way. From his funny gestures to his comedic facial expressions, the way he inflates the balloons are all tricks done by comedic clowns in the circus. Loki perhaps designed the mask's properties to be inspired by a jester, who was common in the old era.
2 The Mask - Stanley Ipkiss
The best version of The Mask, Stanley Ipkiss, is perhaps the funniest non-traditional clown in film history. He is also one of the most popular wittiest characters in The Mask franchise. While Stanley is somewhat of a coward in real life, his mask persona is completely the opposite.
In the movie, Stanley Ipkiss is a tv-loving bank clerk who is pretty much a pushover. His life isn't great, and comedic tragedies are always around the corner. That is until he finds the Mask and becomes a truly hilarious superhero vigilante that Edge City deserves.
1 Patch Adams - Dr. Hunter "Patch" Adams
Patch Adams is a popular 1998 film based on the life of Dr. Hunter "Patch" Adams. The movie follows the book Gesundheit: Good Health Is a Laughing Matter by the popular doctor and displays his life and the things he did. The film starts by showing Patch Adams realizing that humor is necessary for fellow patients.
The doctor then spends his life better helping the ones in need and becomes the sweetest clown in any movie ever. While the critics initially trashed Patch Adams, it soon became a cult classic due to the music score and performances.