Warner Bros. has already released several (excluding Wonder Woman) awful films, why not release another one?
According to The Hollywood Reporter, well-known actor Joaquin Phoenix (Her, Gladiator) has finalized a deal with Warner Bros. to star as The Joker in a standalone film. Not part of the established DC Extended Universe, the film will allegedly be dark compared to previous DC-based Warner Bros. films and will strive to be different than the rest of the superhero films which have dominated the box office.
Todd Phillips, who is famous for writing and directing films like The Hangover series, Road Trip, Old School and War Dogs, co-wrote the script and will be director of the film. Warner Bros. described the basis for the film as an “exploration of a man disregarded by society [that] is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.”
The film has a proposed budget of just $55 million which is rather small compared to other comic book based superhero films and Warner Bros. is supposedly eyeing a release date sometime in the fall/winter of 2019. Actor Jared Leto (unfortunately) will also be starring in another Joker film which is rumored to take place in the established DC Extended Universe.
Was this necessary? No. But are we all going to see it? Probably.
