Joker is a first for the Worlds of DC as it’ll break out of the continuity of the DCEU and tell its own standalone take on the Clown Prince of Crime’s origins, untethered to any need to start or continue a franchise. Well, at least that’s what we thought. Director Todd Phillips has now revealed that he’s not ruling out following up Joker with a sequel. With one stipulation, that is: leading man Joaquin Phoenix has to return.
Phillips was speaking with Total Film Magazine when he was asked about the chances of a Joker 2. The director didn’t commit to anything, obviously, but did make clear that if all of the elements aligned so that the opportunity was there, he’d definitely hop back in the saddle to make another.
“One thing I will tell you: I would do anything with Joaquin, any day of the week. There’s nobody like him. If he was willing to do it, and if people show up to this movie, and Warners came to us and said, ‘You know what? If you guys could think of something…’ Well, I have a feeling that he and I could think of something pretty cool.”
So, it sounds like Warner Bros. isn’t necessarily thinking of Joker as a sequel-maker, but the option is there to do more if there’s a call for it. As ever, it likely all depends on how the movie performs when it arrives later this year. Alternatively, even if the box office doesn’t smash records, then maybe if that rumored Oscar buzz amounts to something it could convince the studio that it’d be worth their while to do a sequel.
Like Phillips says, though, it all depends on whether Phoenix would want to return. The maverick actor hasn’t typically been one for signing up for sequels. If he did though, he’d be the first person to play the Joker twice on the big screen (assuming Jared Leto doesn’t come back). But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. First, we need to see how Joker fares when it hits theaters on October 4th.