While Bruce Wayne whips around in Lambos and flies private all over the world, enjoying the luxuries of a billionaire playboy and pop culture superstar, the Joker always applied a more DIY punk approach. From putting together his own incredible wardrobe and doing his own makeup to assembling a band of like-minded individuals to cause a ruckus in the streets and shock the societal norms of Gotham City, the late Heath Ledger’s Joker knew how to make a scene. If he wasn’t a murderous psychopath, you’d think Joker’s antics were all part of an album rollout.

Ledger took influence from many sources for his portrayal of Joker, citing interviews done by Tom Waits, the character Alex in A Clockwork Orange, his own clown act in The Brothers Grimm, a whole host of classic punk artists, the smeared style of Francis Bacon paintings, and more. It was a performance for the ages and cemented the actor’s legacy forever.

But it wasn’t just the Joker that made The Dark Knight one of the most punk rock movies. It was the music, the lighting, the Matt Skiba cameo.

“Look, The Dark Knight is a punk score, without a shadow of a doubt,” said Dark Knight composer Hans Zimmer on the podcast I Think You’re Interesting. “And all these classical musicians just completely embracing this and being liberated by this sort of thing. And figuring it out! It takes a different attitude, and it’s not that easy to shed your well-behaved skin.”

When our team was putting together The Hundreds X The Dark Knight collaboration, we knew it had to have a punk feel to it, with nods to DIY and anti-establishment culture. It was also important to imagine the events of The Dark Knight from the perspective of a Gotham City citizen. What would it feel like to experience all of this? What would it be like watching the news or reading the paper during all of this chaos? What kind of music would be playing? What would people be wearing?

We tapped Shane Gonzales, founder and designer of Midnight Studios, to help us bring The Dark Knight collection to life. His brand perfectly encapsulates modern punk counter-culture and we couldn’t think of someone better to imagine what life would be like in Gotham during the events of The Dark Knight.

Gonzales, aka @shaneaveli, has collaborated with the likes of Virgil Abloh, A$AP Rocky, and The Sex Pistols, but this is the first time he’s worked on a project like this. We caught up with the artist and entrepreneur to find out what inspired his designs and what he thought The Joker would be listening to.

DUKE LONDON: Why did you want to work on this Dark Knight project with The Hundreds?
SHANE GONZALES: The Dark Knight movie is so iconic, and one of the greatest superhero films ever made in my opinion. I’m honored to be able to attach my name to a picture I love, alongside a brand I’ve grown up on.

These pieces are designed from the perspective of a citizen living in Gotham City and witnessing the events of The Dark Knight unfolding in real-time. What would that have been like for you?
I think there’s only one word to explain that: Chaos. With everything going on in the world right now, from crime and pandemics to political madness, ‘chaos’ is the only word I feel.

Do you think there are such things as heroes and villains or do we all have varying pieces of our character that come out at different times?
In life, from childhood to adulthood, we all categorize people of the world as heroes or villains. Quite literally you see certain political figures, corrupt governments, and police forces, people around you, bullies, terrorists, etc as villains. We often view parents, friends, local citizens, noncorrupt government officials, celebrities, etc as heroes. But if you put yourself in someone else’s shoes, you may find yourself portraying traits of both, and I think you need to step back and make sure you’re doing everything you can to fall in the hero category more often than not. Everything will be fine.

What is it about midnight and things that happen after dark that are so alluring?
Growing up, my parents always told me, “Nothing good happens after midnight.” But as I got older and ventured more into the world, I quickly realized that’s when the real fun begins.

What would streetwear be like in the world of Gotham City? What would the punk scene be like?
I imagine in a city with a constant dark cloud hovering above day after day, everything would look very dull and monochrome. Possibly with a hint of tactical use just in case you’re caught in the middle of one of Joker’s attacks. I’d imagine the music scene would look something like a Damned meets Bauhaus meets The Prodigy show.

What kind of music were you listening to while working on this project?
Honestly, I just watched The Dark Knight over and over. The score by Hans Zimmer and James Newton Howard was really good so the background noise was good enough for me!

What do you think would be on Joker’s playlist?
As much as I want to say something like Suicidal Tendencies, Stooges, or Sabbath, I think in reality he’s too calculated and composed. The only thing on his playlist would be symphonies, orchestras, and jazz.

Is Christopher Nolan’s take on Batman and The Joker your favorite?
As of now, it is 100 percent my favorite of all the Batman films. I am, however, very excited for Matt Reeves’ The Batman next year. I think it will give The Dark Knight a run for its money, but I highly doubt anyone will ever top Heath Ledger’s performance.

What did you like about the way Nolan reimagined these iconic characters?
I think Nolan’s Joker excelled because his character isn’t as much focused on chaos, terror, and destruction, as it is in the other films. The theme with this Joker dives deeper into honesty and exposing the lies and corruption that we all have within. The deeper thought in this film, to me, makes it the best possible Joker we’ve gotten so far.

What was it like to design this collection around this character?
I was thrilled to focus on a collection where the villain is the priority when the opposite is usually preferred. I feel like the dark side isn’t as touched upon, and with my design style and aesthetic, this seemed fitting. Getting to work with iconic quotes and imagery from The Joker’s perspective was amazing.

What were some of the most challenging parts of designing this collection?
I think the most challenging aspect of this collection was finding a way to separate my designs using available assets to merch you could buy from the actual movie online, or at an amusement park. The Joker was such a terrifying person to the people of Gotham City so I wanted to make sure there was a balance between him being a “Savior or Menace” as you’ll find in The Gotham Times.