For the most part, WB’s animated take on DC heroes has had PG-13 tones, but the upcoming adaptation of Batman: The Killing Joke will receive an R-rating. Based on the Alan Moore and Brian Bolland‘s famous comic book storyline of the same name, the animated direct-to-video feature will be close to its source and have voice actors Kevin Conroy and Mark Hamill reprising their roles as Batman and The Joker, respectively.

Now a new trailer has appeared showing us just how close the animated feature will be to its storyline. Check it out below.

Many consider The Killing Joke to be the definitive Joker origins story and one of the best Batman stories ever published. Considering its R-rating, it should be interesting to see how far the adaptation will push the envelope considering the dark and gritty themes explored in the source material and if there will be any sort of additions or creative changes. Despite this relatively short snippet of a trailer, we will see the kinds of torture The Joker will force other characters to endure.

For those who have been itching for a taste of a Batman that will be true to its dark nature, there is no doubt The Killing Joke will satisfy that need. The problem is, a majority of animated films are targeted towards family audiences, and parents could be in for a quite a shock if they didn’t know what The Killing Joke was based on.

The trailer first appeared on Yahoo, but just in case their embed doesn’t work we also have the YouTube version from JoBlo below.

Batman: The Killing Joke will make its feature debut at the San Diego Comic-Con this year, and then be released on digital and Blu-ray after.

Here’s the official plot synopsis:

As Batman hunts for the escaped Joker, the Clown Prince of Crime attacks the Gordon family to prove a diabolical point mirroring his own fall into madness.

Trailer

[Source: Yahoo | YouTube]