Beyond the various casting stories, confirmed details about Todd Phillips' street-feel take on the origin story for the Crown Prince Of Crime, Joker, have been thin on the ground. But now we have a first look at what Joaquin Phoenix will look like as the main character. Take a gander...
We also now know that the character – before he becomes the Joker, at least – is in this incarnation called Arthur. Which seems like a mundane name for one who will go on to be so chaotic, but then that's the whole idea of Phillips' film. He's described Joker, which takes place outside the DCEU, as "an exploration of a man disregarded by society that is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale." Which is the advantage, we suppose, of not having to tie-in to the larger canvas. And the film is being planned for a much smaller budget, spending around $55 million, which is considerably less than your average superhero adventure. Arthur here will be a wannabe performer who comes a cropper in a harsh world and re-emerges as something quite different.
The cast also includes Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy and Glow's Marc Maron, but not Alec Baldwin, who was reported as being in the ensemble for a matter of hours before he announced he wasn't doing the movie. Joker currently has a 4 October 2019 release date pencilled in for the US.
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