Well, well. It seems that after much speculation that the rumored standalone joker film starring Joaquin Phoenix has been given the green light! Even though there has been no official announcement for the film, THR is reporting that the standalone film is now officially happening. The film was first rumored back in August of last year, but since then we haven’t heard much but rumblings. Although Warner Brothers was initially eyeing Leonardo DiCaprio for the lead role, Phoenix entered talks in february of this year. Now, it seems that Phoenix’s deal has been finalized with ‘War Dogs‘ director Todd Phillips taking the helm, along with co-writing the picture.
The untitled Joker movie been described as “an exploration of a man disregarded by society [that] is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.” Indeed it seems that the film will be more of a self-contained story that will be more concerned with dissecting the character rather than making more connections to the current DCEU slate of films. In other words, it’s a one-off. The film is rumored to have a production budget of $55 million (a far cry some most superhero movies) with hopes of beginning shooting later this year. It’s not known if this film will carry an R-rating, but the film is said to be a darker, more risky take on the character, suggesting that this may be the case.
The final revelation here is that Martin Scorsesse is no longer attached to produce the project. Although the legendary director & producer seemed instrumental in attracting interest in the project, that’s no longer the case. Even more interesting is that Frequent Scorsesse collaborator Emma Tillinger Koskoff (‘The Wold of Wall Street’) is producing this film with Richard Baratta serving as an executive producer. While Joaquin Phoenix was originally tight-lipped about his involvement with the project, an unusually unreserved Phoenix recent open up about his involvement in a recent interview with Collider. Here’s what Phoenix had to say about joining the project:
Indeed, it seems that Pheonix was hesitant to take on the role, but once he realized that the film would not be connected to the current slate of DCEU films it’s easy to see how a character actor like Phoenix would latch on to more of a character study.
This Joker standalone movie has yet to shake out a release date, but it’s possible that the film could see a possible 2019 release. Make sure to check back as more develops on the film in the future.
Image via DC Comics
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