Joker: 4 stand-up comedy Easter eggs from the film

Joker featured a number of interesting Easter eggs connected to the world of stand-up comedy.

Todd Phillips’ Joker is in the midst of an extremely successful opening weekend, with fans and critics alike having become enthralled with Joaquin Phoenix’s take on the Clown Prince of Crime. It seems as though everyone has come to love Arthur Fleck’s unique backstory, as the origin of this version of the Joker character takes a steep turn away from the Batman mythos in which comic book fans are accustomed.

A huge part of said origin has to be Arthur’s obsession with becoming a famous stand-up comedian. Arthur wants to perform in all of the big clubs and eventually, appear on the talk show of Murray Franklin (Robert De Niro’s), who is essentially the Johnny Carson of what can be interpreted as 1980s Gotham City.

The audience gets to watch Fleck’s journey from struggling party clown to somewhat successful late-night comic (or so it seems), all the way from him writing material, to taking notes while watching other comedians, to performing at Pogo’s comedy club. With such a strong emphasis being put on this particular art, it is only right that a few real stand-up comedians pop up into the film.

For the most part, there were some surprising cameos and Easter eggs from established stand-up comedians, but the unpolished comedy fan may not have picked up on all of these appearances. Here are all of the stand-up comedy Easter eggs caught by us, and be sure to look out for them during your next viewing of Joker!