Todd Phillips thinks that Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker would be a fan of Batman.
Joker: Folie á Deux releases in United States theaters this coming October. The upcoming sequel is directed by Phillips and will see Phoenix reprise his role as the titular Joker.
Speaking to IGN, Phillips discussed how Phoenix’s Joker would act if he ever came face-to-face with Batman.
What did Todd Phillips say about Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker and Batman?
“I think Arthur would be in awe of the alpha male that is Batman. I really do. I think Arthur would look up and appreciate it,” he said. “I think he’d be in awe of that.”
Phoenix’s Clown Prince of Crime did have a brief interaction with a young Bruce Wayne, played by Dante Pereira-Olson, in 2019’s Joker. There are no plans for a third Joker movie at this time, meaning it’s unlikely that Phoenix’s character will ever meet the Dark Knight.
“I think Arthur always had a fascination with men at ease, and he is not a man at ease. [Robert De Niro’s] Murray Franklin in the first movie was a man at ease,” Phillips continued. “He probably saw the guys he worked with as men at ease, and that was the one thing that Arthur could never be was a man at ease.”
“Joker: Folie À Deux finds Arthur Fleck institutionalized at Arkham awaiting trial for his crimes as Joker. While struggling with his dual identity, Arthur not only stumbles upon true love, but also finds the music that’s always been inside him,” the synopsis for the new movie reads.
Along with Phoenix, the upcoming sequel stars Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn, Harry Lawtey as Harvey Dent, and Zazie Beetz as Sophie Dumond. The cast also includes Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Steve Coogan, Leigh Gill, Sharon Washington, Jacob Lofland, Ken Leung, and Bill Smitrovich.
Joker: Folie À Deux releases in United States theaters on October 4, 2024.
