Joker director Todd Phillips says film won’t crossover with The Batman
By Monita Mohan
Fans hoping to see Joaquin Phoenix and Robert Pattinson face off in the future as the Joker and Batman will be disappointed.
The solo Joker film has been in the news non-stop since its announcement. Recently, it won the top award at the Venice Film Festival, and this week it debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival with many praising Joaquin Phoenix’ turn as the Clown Prince of Crime.
The question most DC fans have been asking is whether Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker will meet his nemesis, Batman, in a future DC property. After all, there’s a new Caped Crusader in town – the Matt Reeves-directed The Batman is scheduled to be released in two years’ time, starring Robert Pattinson as the titular superhero. For those hoping for a crossover, unfortunately, there’s bad news on the horizon.
More from DCEU
- New Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom trailer pushes Arthur to his limits
- 7 actors who could replace Ezra Miller as The Flash in the DC Universe
- James Gunn gives interesting update of Superman and Supergirl movies at DC Studios
- All 7 Wonder Woman actresses ranked from worst to best
- All 8 Black Canary actresses ranked from worst to best
According to Variety, who spoke to Joker director Todd Phillips at TIFF, his film is a standalone property and he doesn’t expect his Joker to feature in a future film with Pattinson’s Batman. “No, definitely not,” Phillips told Variety when asked about the pair facing off in another film. This doesn’t necessarily mean that Batman won’t meet the Joker in whichever films he appears in, the suggestion is simply that, as of now, Phoenix will not reprise his role for a crossover property.
Joker re-imagines the origin story of the supervillain and has already courted controversy for its apparent glamorization of the homicidal maniac. While we reserve judgment on the need for this film, there’s no doubt that Phoenix would have given the role his all, and there is already talk of possible Oscar nominations for Phoenix and the film.
Next. Batwoman: 5 essential comics to read before the CW series. dark
Warner Brothers’ decision to create standalone films instead of a shared universe for their DC titles may be the better direction for them. It gives the creative teams greater freedom to develop their own worlds and characters, as seen with Aquaman, Wonder Woman and now with Joker.
Joker is set for theatrical release on October 4, 2019.