Joker: 3 major reasons why there should not be a sequel

3. Phillips should learn from The Hangover

Pre-Joker, Todd Phillips’ most iconic movie was undoubtedly The Hangover. It was the movie that launched his career into the mainstream – and it did the same for many of the stars of the film.

Similar to Joker, The Hangover achieved box office success that the movie industry did not anticipate. It was a hit on all fronts (box office, critics and fans). A sequel was quickly greenlit – starting the unlikely The Hangover franchise.

The Hangover Part II had a better box office gross than its predecessor, but the movie was given a larger budget. Then came The Hangover Part III which significantly underperformed at the box office and had a budget of over $100 million.

What piled on to the declining success of The Hangover franchise was the quality of the movies – which declined severely. Would Joker work with a larger budget? The Hangover movies certainly did not benefit from a bigger budget.

Phillips has stated previously that Joker has no connection to the main DCEU nor does it share a connection to Robert Pattinson’s The Batman. There was never a plan to make this into a franchise so making a sequel would seem rushed. It would be a clear money grab.

Phillips has earned back the goodwill he had after the success of The Hangover and after the the decline of the following movies. He should take the success he has earned from Joker and move on to another project – whether that project is another comic-book movie or not is up to him.