With the current DC Universe in disarray with the disappearances of Superman and Batman (Henry Cavill and Ben Affleck), it’s ironic that a familiar villain will be getting their own movie.
The villain in question is The Joker who is the arch nemesis of Batman, and a character that has already been portrayed by various actors and will now be played by Joaquin Phoenix. Having last been seen on the screen in the 2016 movie Suicide Squad played Jared Leto, the bad guy will have a standalone movie set for the 4th of October 2019.
Sneak peek
The movies director, Todd Phillips, has released a small sneak peek for the audience yesterday.
Phillips added the caption of “Arthur”, which is probably the original name of the villain before he took on the Joker namesake. The post itself showcases a regular guy who seems done with life, but still with an air around him that’s kinda creepy and disturbed. It will be very interesting to see how they will be taking this Average Joe to the psychotic villain we all know.
Apart from the released post by Phillips, we were granted some set photos as well.
Here, Phoenix is seen having a scuffle with another actor who can be seen wearing a clown costume. The fact that Phoenix’s character can be seen laughing maniacally might mean that he’s already on his way towards the Joker identity.
The Joker’s Legacy
The Joker’s purple blazer has already been worn by multiple actors over the years, with the most popular version being portrayed by Heath Ledger, who had received a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor in 2009 for his role.
In 1989, Jack Nicholson was the first actor who took the character down the darker route, stealing the show from Michael Keaton’s Batman. The most recent portrayal was done by Jared Leto, and while the movie was a box-office hit, his depiction was deemed laughable by critics and fans alike. It was all the more worse as he had to fill the shoes Ledger had left behind. We’ll have to wait and see whether Joaquin is up to the challenge.
There were some fans questioning how Leto’s and Phoenix’s version would exist side-by-side, but the director and Warner Brothers Studio already stated that it would be a stand alone movie, separate from the DC movie universe. Interestingly, the studio also claimed that they were debating on a stand alone movie for Leto’s Joker as well. Depending on how Joaquin will perform in the upcoming role, people might be disappointed in receiving the latter movie.
The Movie
Playing into superhero movie tradition, the new movie will revolve around an origin story. This will in fact be very interesting as, unlike the regular superheroes, the Joker never officially had a real backstory. With multiple origin stories floating around, the movie will surely be fascinating.
We did receive some details on the upcoming movie which first surfaced in July. Set in the ’80s, the story will revolve around the “exploration of a man disregarded by society that is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale,” according to WB. Judging by this statement, it’s likely that the movie won’t be family friendly.
With the set photos and sneak peek released, it seems that the movie development is well on its way. We’re just a year off and then we’ll see whether the Joker will really be the last one to laugh.
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