When DCEU detractors want to point out the flaws of Warner Bros.’ management of their stable of superheroes, the easiest example is the Joker. The character that has never failed them in the past, especially in recent history with Heath Ledger’s iconic performance, has been the source of all sorts of insane rumors and speculation. Will Jared Leto’s Joker show up in “Suicide Squad 2?” How about “Birds of Prey?” Oh yeah, and there’s that standalone movie too right? And where does Joaquin Phoenix fit into all of this?
While we wait for official announcements from WB, all we’re left to do is wonder what the hell WB/DC has up their sleeves for one of their most famous characters. However, according to Mark Hughes, from Forbes, it’s not as complicated as we originally thought. And in fact, for fans of Phoenix, the future might be brighter than anticipated.
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Appearing on the Superhero News Show, Hughes first stated that he thinks the idea of a standalone Leto Joker film is not likely, however, he could appear in ‘Squad 2’ or “Birds of Prey.” What’s more likely is that Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker could be the future:
“I think Joaquin Phoenix is playing the Joker in a standalone film, that will possibly wind up not being standalone, as the situation evolved with the solo Batman movies and the future of the DCEU shapes up. I haven’t heard anything firm, but I’ve heard certainly whispers from several people that I’ve talked to about that project… so now it looks like there’s going to be that project and I have heard from a few people that there is talk of if [the Joker] movie is really going to go forward and if it’s really that good, if we’re rebooting Batman anyway, he’s going to need a Joker. We can’t use preexisting Jokers. So, we either have Jared Leto showing up as the Joker in some sort of sequel movie, and a Joaquin Phoenix solo Joker movie, and then we have to have another Joker. Wouldn’t it make more sense to take a Martin Scorsese-produced Joker with Joaquin Phoenix and wait and see if it works out, then just cross that and have that be the Joker for the new Batman?”
So it appears from that explanation that WB is definitely moving forward on a Phoenix Joker film (obviously, that’s too good of an opportunity to pass up), and if that film is a hit, they will fold him into the new Matt Reeves ‘Batman’ series. At this point, it sounds like the Reeves Bat-verse should be the new DCEU, but we’ll wait for the films to judge once and for all.
Will you be sad to see Leto’s Joker phased out of the film universe?