Director Todd Phillips confirmed that Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker will not face off against Robert Pattinson’s Batman in the future.
With the huge critical success of Joker coming from the Venice Film Festival, recently winning the Golden Lion Prize, many have wondered if this could lead to a crossover down the line. Joaquin Phoenix is getting praised for his performance as The Joker in the upcoming film. Meanwhile, Robert Pattinson is gearing up to play the next Batman in the film from Matt Reeves.
Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker was pitched by director Todd Phillips as a standalone, taking place in the 80s with a young Bruce Wayne even appearing in the film. While there are are many villains rumored to be going up against Robert Pattinson’s Batman in the upcoming film, The Joker is not one of them.
At the Toronto International Film Festival, Joker director Todd Phillips was asked by Variety if Joaquin Phoenix’s version will face Robert Pattinson’s Batman:
“No, definitely not. Oddly, in the states, comic books are our Shakespeare it seems, and you can do many many versions of “Hamlet.” There will be many more jokers, I’m sure, in the future.”
Are you happy that Joaquin Pheonix’s Joker will remain a true standalone? Do you think Robert Pattinson’s Batman will eventually face a different Joker down the line? Comment below!
Details for the Robert Pattinson-led Batman project are being kept under lock and key. Previous rumors once pointed to an earlier version of the script featuring Ben Affleck bookending the film as his current Batman while the film introduced Robert Pattinson as the Caped Crusader in his earlier years. But with Ben Affleck officially retired from the role, Robert Pattinson is replacing the Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice and Justice League star as Batman.
We know that The Batman will center around a younger Bruce Wayne and feature a Rogues’ Gallery of villains. Director Matt Reeves has also confirmed that it will not be directly based on Frank Miller’s acclaimed Year One comic and will make use of the Dark Knight’s detective skills to a greater extent than previous DC Films. It is expected to be the first chapter in a new movie trilogy with Robert Pattinson as Batman.
Here is the official synopsis for Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker:
Director Todd Phillips’ Joker centers around the iconic arch nemesis and is an original, standalone fictional story not seen before on the big screen. Phillips’ exploration of Arthur Fleck, who is indelibly portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix, is of a man struggling to find his way in Gotham’s fractured society. A clown-for-hire by day, he aspires to be a stand-up comic at night…but finds the joke always seems to be on him. Caught in a cyclical existence between apathy and cruelty, Arthur makes one bad decision that brings about a chain reaction of escalating events in this gritty character study.
Directed by Todd Phillips from a script he co-wrote with Scott Silver, Joker stars Joaquin Phoenix, Zazie Beetz, Bill Camp, Frances Conroy, Brett Cullen, Glenn Fleshler, Douglas Hodge, Marc Maron, Josh Pais, and Shea Whigham.
Joker will be released in theaters on October 4, 2019. Stay tuned for the latest news on the Joaquin Phoenix movie!
Robert Pattinson’s The Batman will be released in theaters on June 25, 2021.
Source: Variety