Why so serious? Put on a happy face, for the new Joker trailer has finally been released online.
Todd Phillips’ origins movie/alternate take on the Clown Prince of Crime arrives in a couple of months’ time, marking DC’s first film to fall outside of the DCEU since 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises. As we saw from the initial preview, Joker will explore how Joaquin Phoenix’s damaged loner Arthur Fleck loses his mind and is driven to terrorizing Gotham dressed in clown make-up.
This second trailer, meanwhile, gives us a better look at Arthur in Joker mode, and Phoenix appears to be offering up an astonishing performance. It’s not easy to find a new way to portray a character as oft-seen as the Joker, but it seems he’s managed it. Warner Bros. is said to be hoping for some Oscar buzz around the movie, after all, with an eye on getting Phoenix a Best Actor nom. The Academy is typically averse to comic book films, but the last time an actor in a DC pic was nominated was Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. So, Phoenix might be in with a chance.
In fact, Phillips has actually gone so far as to compare his movie to Christopher Nolan’s much-hallowed Batman flick, citing that Joker is similarly about more than just capes and cowls and has something to say about society and the real world. The difference is that his film’s biggest inspiration is Martin Scorsese movies. The acclaimed director’s frequent collaborator Robert De Niro is even on board in the supporting role of talk show host Murray Franklin.
Zazie Beetz also stars as Sophie, Arthur’s love interest, while Brett Cullen appears as Thomas Wayne, father of Bruce, who’ll be portrayed less sympathetically than usual – even being partly based on Donald Trump. Batman purists may be conflicted about Joker, then, but it promises to be a one-of-a-kind DC cinematic experience all the same. Catch it in cinemas on October 4th.