Yet another Oscar-winning actor is poised to join the DCEU: Robert De Niro is reportedly circling Joaquin Phoenix‘s upcoming Joker spinoff.
Both The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline are claiming the exclusive (we’ll let them duke it out over who found out first), but both major trades are saying essentially the same thing: De Niro is in talks to play a talk show host who is a key figure in the Joker’s (Phoenix) transformation into a supervillain.
While that’s a pretty vague description, the other big trade in the game, Variety, has an additional detail about DeNiro’s involvement that sounds pretty intriguing:
Insiders say the script has ties to De Niro’s recent comedy “King of Comedy,” about a failing comedian who kidnaps a popular talk-show host to gain fame. In this case, the roles would be reversed, with De Niro playing the smug host.
Since the flick is reportedly taking direct inspiration from a De Niro flick, it seems likely that the celebrated actor’s casting is all but a sure thing. It would be pretty great to see Phoenix go toe-to-toe with a great like De Niro, and we’re eager to have this deal become official.
The as-yet-untitled Joker project, from writer-director Todd Phillips, is set to begin production in September.
Earlier in 2018, he saw the release of Lynne Ramsay’s “You Were Never Really Here” and the arty thriller remains one of the very best movies of 2018. (Keep in mind that he won an acting prize at the previous year’s Cannes Film Festival, where an unfinished version of the movie screened.) And later this year, he’ll appear in “The Sisters Brothers,” which besides being the best-titled movie in the universe, also marks the English language debut of certifiable genius filmmaker Jacques Audiard.
And what’s more, he’s starring in one of the most enjoyable movies of the year (yes another one) right now — Gus Van Sant’s “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot,” a lyrical, often hilarious biography of quadriplegic cartoonist John Callahan. Not only is the film thoughtful and moving, but it’s also amazing to see Phoenix reteam with Gus Van Sant for the first time since 1995’s “To Die For” (!) Really, it’s great.
So you can imagine what a thrill it was to get to talk to Phoenix about his process for “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot,” what it was like to get back together with Van Sant, and what his thoughts are on working with Amazon Studios.
Moviefone: This is the first time you’ve worked with Gus since “To Die For.” What was that process like? Had there been other projects that had almost happened?
Joaquin Phoenix: I’ve stayed in touch with Gus over the years, and there have been a couple of things that were looked at, but never quite worked. But I was always interested in working with him again, because he was so instrumental in the kind of actor I am. I worked with him at a really crucial part of my career. I hadn’t worked since I was a kid, and then I worked when I was 19 years old. He really changed the way I thought about acting. So I was really eager to work with him again. The process was incredible. In some ways, it was like being back in ’95 or whenever it was. Have you ever met him?
Yes, I met him when he was doing press for “Promised Land.” He’s so calming.
Exactly! That’s what I was going to say. That quality is something that I think actors really benefit from.
Before you signed on, did you know of the work of John Callahan?
I didn’t. I wasn’t familiar with him at all.
So, keeping that in mind, what was your research process like?
Well, the first thing I did was read his autobiography several times. He’s so forthright and honest about so much in his life, and it really gives you a sense of the kind of man that he was and the man that he became.
Gus had several hours of footage that he’d shot of John from the ’90s, and so I got those tapes and that was really helpful because I was able to get really specific about his movements and his physicality. As I learned through the research — and this may seem obvious — but not every person’s body reacts in the same ways to the same injury. So John was a C5/C6, and my assumption was that everybody that was a C5/C6 — their body reacts in the same way. But that was not the case. And so the footage was really helpful for me to identify John’s very specific movements.
Then I went down to Rancho Los Amigos and met with the quads there. Rancho Los Amigos was the rehabilitation hospital John went to after the accident.
What was maybe most helpful was speaking to some of the employees, as well. Some in particular helped me realize what motivated John’s movements. I didn’t want to mimic his movements, I wanted to understand why, and I had to figure it out. They pointed out that it was because he was in pain, so he was always trying to shift his body. That really changed the way I thought about a lot of the scenes and the character, because in the videos Gus shot, he doesn’t seem to be in pain. But it became such a part of his daily life that you wouldn’t notice it if you were talking to him and that was an interesting insight.
Amazon Studios
Did you end up talking to any of the people from John’s life?
Yeah, we met with one of his girlfriends and with family members. And then people in Portland. He was pretty notorious in Portland. Everybody knew him. So we went up to Portland and met his fans and people who knew him.
This is the second movie you’ve made this year for Amazon Studios. What was that process like for you and how do you see things going?
Listen, it’s like with every new technology — you have to adjust. I always think about vinyl. Back when records didn’t hold so much information. You couldn’t have a 14-minute composition. That’s how the three-minute pop song was invented. And you think about the Beatles and “Sgt. Pepper’s.” I imagine people at the time were going, “What the f**k is this?” What the artist does with the new technology always determines whether it’s culturally beneficial or not. In some ways, there is this idea that for things to be in the theater, they require a cinematic experience. I think there’s something great about those standards. When I was making movies in the ’90s, they’d give you $30 million to make almost anything, with the independent boom. These days, it seems like more of a struggle to make those kinds of movies. That’s painful and difficult in some ways, and it might be pushing us in other ways that are ultimately going to be beneficial.
Annapurna Pictures
You’ve obviously had an amazing year so far and have a really exciting movie coming out with “The Sisters Brothers.” Can you talk about what it was like working with Jacques Audiard on his first English language movie?
Oh, man. Making that movie was incredible. It was challenging at times, it was long, there were a lot of difficult locations, but I loved working with John and Jacques is one of the most insightful, perceptive directors I’ve ever worked with — and I would do anything to have the opportunity to work with him again. He’s just … f**k … he’s just brilliant. It was almost intimidating how brilliant he was. He is also very kind and thoughtful and he loves filmmaking and you can just tell. He’s somebody who is really inspiring to be around.
Besides Jacques and Gus, obviously you’ve worked with some amazing directors from PTA to Spike Jonze to Lynne Ramsay. Are there still people who you’d love to work with and who are you itchy to reteam with?
I get asked this question all the time and every time I say, “I am going to remember the directors I want to work with” and I swear to God every f**king time I forget. It’s so frustrating because I want to send out a signal that says, “Hey, I want to work with you.” I’m very fortunate in terms of the people I’ve gotten to work with and certainly in the last several years every director I’ve worked with, I’d want to do it again. I’m anxious to work with Lynne again. The moment we were done filming, I started to talk to Gus. And obviously Paul. I’ve just been very lucky.
“Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot” is in limited release now and expanding every week. Go see it!
She would play “a single mother who catches the interest of the man who will become the ‘clown prince of crime.’”
“Joker” has been compared to a dark crime thriller, described as an “exploration of a man disregarded by society that is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.”
It’s meant to have a lower budget than the DC Extended Universe movies, since it’s not part of that world. (Jared Leto is still the current Joker in the DCEU, and he may still get his own movie.)
“Joker” — the official title — is scheduled to start filming in New York in September.
Meanwhile, Beetz’s career is still flying high. She’s an Emmy nominee for her role as Van in “Atlanta,” and she has several films coming up beyond “Joker” — including “Finding Her,” “Slice,” “High Flying Bird,” “The Undiscovered Country,” “Against All Enemies,” and “Pale Blue Dot.” She’ll also be back for more fun with Ryan Reynolds in the eventual “X-Force” movie.
“Joker” was just given a release date of Oct. 4, 2019.
The studio has officially marked Oct. 4, 2019 as the dark film’s release date, Variety reports. The announcement came Wednesday ahead of San Diego Comic-Con. It follows THR‘s report last week that the film will start shooting in September.
Phoenix has made it clear that he’s passionate about the project. He recently told Moviefone that “the one thing that only consistently motivates [his choice of films to star in] is the character and the filmmaker,” which were two great reasons to sign on for “Joker.” He’ll be playing one of DC Comics’ most iconic antiheroes in what is described as an “exploration of a man disregarded by society that is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.”
In addition to boasting a fascinating protagonist, the film has Todd Phillips directing. He co-wrote the script with Scott Silver. Emma Tillinger Kosoff is producing, while Richard Baratta serves as executive producer.
“Joker” is set to kick off filming in New York this September, and then it won’t be all that long before we can see the Clown Prince of Crime in theaters the following October.
Earlier today we spoke with the absolutely lovely Joaquin Phoenix about his brilliant new film “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot.” That film, which reunites him with his “To Die For” director Gus Van Sant, is a postcard-sized character study of American cartoonist John Callahan. Just yesterday it was announced that he’d officially signed on to something much, much bigger: Warner Bros’ standalone ‘Joker’ film, to be directed by Todd Phillips and executive produced by Martin Scorsese.
We couldn’t help but ask the actor why, when he’d been very publicly courted for lead role in Marvel Studios’ “Doctor Strange,” he would sign on to do this comic book adaptation instead.
“Well, the one thing that only consistently motivates me is the character and the filmmaker. And so it just has happened that those things have never come together for a bigger movie but I’m not opposed to any genre or any size of film,” Phoenix explained. “I typically make films that are maybe more independent, that’s where I’ve found the most interesting characters and the things I want to pursue, but I’m not opposed to any film. But I will say that I don’t think you can equate this movie with some of those other movies that you’ve talked about.”
When we asked if this would be something completely different, Phoenix wryly shot back, “I don’t know what it’s going to be. So I’ll just leave it at that.”
“Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot” opens in select theaters this week (it’s really, really great).
Joaquin Phoenix finalized his deal to play The Joker in DC’s upcoming origin story.
So it’s really happening.
With DC/Warner Bros. it’s rarely clear what’s official and what’s just rumored — especially with all of the back-and-forth reports about Jared Leto’s Joker vs. Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker.
But The Hollywood Reporter says Phoenix recently closed his deal, and filming on the origin story will begin in New York this September. There’s no release date yet, but THR speculated that Warner Bros. could put it on the release calendar as early as next year.
This Joker standalone — whose title has yet to be revealed –was co-written by Todd Phillips, who is also directing. The studio has apparently described it as an “exploration of a man disregarded by society [that] is not only a gritty character study, but also a broader cautionary tale.” It’s being compared to a crime drama.
A few months ago, sources told TheWrap this Joker movie would “portray Batman’s arch-nemesis as a failed 1980s comedian who becomes the clown prince of crime after bombing with audiences.”
This Joker movie is said to be separate from the DC Extended Universe of “Justice League” and Jared Leto’s Joker in “Suicide Squad.” THR said it’s meant to be more experimental in tone than the DCEU films, and also less expensive with a roughly $55 million budget.
Jared Leto still reportedly has that solo Joker movie in development, so as of now it doesn’t sound like Joaquin’s film will definitely replace Jared’s. Joker fatigue is a possibility for audiences, but it depends on how the films differentiate from each other, and when each one arrives in theaters. (If the Jared Leto one happens at all.)
Are you excited about this? Joaquin Phoenix is an exciting actor, and if he was intrigued enough to say yes to this project we’ll give it the benefit of the doubt. For now.
On the Superhero News Show, co-host Mark Hughes (who also writes about superhero movies for Forbes) said he thinks that the Leto solo Joker film is “not likely” because “we can’t use preexisting Jokers.” (Sorry, sir. You’re a preexisting Joker. You’re not covered under the current terms of the DCEU.”)
Also, Martin Scorsese‘s Joker movie might precede a new Batman film. Which would then make Phoenix, you guessed it, a “preexisting Joker” if he appears in any other DCEU movie.
Here’s Hughes’s far-from-firm take:
“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?”
According to Variety, Warner Bros. is planning to give Jared Leto his own standalone Joker movie. Leto will both star in and executive produce the movie, which has yet to be titled, branching off from his (surprisingly) limited role in “Suicide Squad.”
This is in addition to — not instead of — the Joker origin movie Todd Phillips is still said to be working on, with Joaquin Phoenix in the lead role. That film is being produced under a new banner separate from the DC Extended Universe, to which Jared Leto’s Joker is part, along with Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, Ben Affleck’s Batman, Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa’s Aquaman, etc.
This is also in addition to the announced sequel to “Suicide Squad,” which Variety said is expected to go into production in 2019.
This Joker standalone is currently searching for a writer, and it’s not clear when it would start filming. It’s also not clear what the movie would be about, but it should connect to “Suicide Squad” or the sequel in some way.
Variety added that the plan is to “expand on the world created by ‘Suicide Squad’ and tie into future installments of that property.” That includes this Joker standalone, and also Harley Quinn’s own “Birds of Prey” movie, which may or may not feature Penguin.
As we all know by now, DC/WB news tends to be fluid, so let’s wait and see what happens.
“Insiders” told TheWrap that this Joker movie “will portray Batman’s arch-nemesis as a failed 1980s comedian who becomes the clown prince of crime after bombing with audiences.” (Talk about thin skin — you become a supervillain ’cause of a tough crowd?)
As TheWrap noted, this direction does tie the film to Martin Scorsese. Fans were surprised to see the legendary director’s name come up as a producer of the film, alongside Phillips as director/producer of “The Hangover” and “War Dogs.”
Scorsese directed the 1982 dark satire “The King of Comedy,” starring Robert De Niro as deranged aspiring stand-up comedian, Rupert Pupkin.
TheWrap’s insiders said this new Joker origin story will include nods to Scorsese’s film. There’s also a graphic novel tie in “The Killing Joke,” which showed the Joker as a struggling stand-up comedian who snapped after “one bad day.” Phoenix is 43-years-old, so this sounds like less of the typical youth-centric origin story and more about an adult man losing his sh*t.
There’s already a warning in TheWrap‘s story that — despite production aiming for a mid-to-late 2018 start — there may be a delay for rewrites. Those rewrites are said to be happening right now, with Phillips and Scott Silver (“The Fighter,” “8 Mile”).
Since the film is still in the writing and rewriting stage, and Phoenix isn’t completely confirmed yet, the direction could shift along the way. That would hardly be new for the DC world, even if this would be separate from the DCEU movies and fall under the new banner.
People weren’t necessarily thrilled to hear that the Joker is getting a standalone movie, but fans can rest assured that the supervillain will be played by a talented actor. While “Suicide Squad” star Jared Leto isn’t reprising the role in this particular project, another Academy Award winner is poised to take over.
Joaquin Phoenix is in talks to star in the standalone Joker movie, Variety reports. After meeting with director Todd Phillips, he has reportedly decided he wants the part. That’s just as well, because he is said to be the helmer’s top choice. Leonardo DiCaprio was previously said to be in consideration.
Fans like the idea of Phoenix as the Joker, if Twitter activity is any indication. Although a lot of people are still wary of the project, news of Phoenix’s potential involvement has done a lot to quell their aversion.
If The Joker is going to be the star of his own film, that Joaquin Phoenix is really the best actor to portray him. If anyone can carry a film as the villain, then he definitely can. And he’d fit the role so much. Plus it’s Joaquin, so of course I’m gonna be hyping this. pic.twitter.com/NlzTgvowA7
I can’t be mad about Joaquin for the Joker, but I would have went with Michael Shannon. Now I know you all want it to. Glad I could help. pic.twitter.com/977lta49I0
Jared Leto stans are furious today. I love Jared Leto but Leonardo DiCaprio & Joaquin Phoenix are huge upgrades. Sorry. I don’t make the rules. #TheJoker
The Joker movie could be exactly what DC needs right now. A grounded standalone film starring an Academy Award-nominated actor (Joaquin Phoenix) and produced by an Academy Award-winning filmmaker (Martin Scorcese). pic.twitter.com/KyS1jSEzST
Joaquin Phoenix, formerly in talks for Lex Luthor, Stephen Strange, and DJ from THE LAST JEDI. Now he’s apparently interested in the Joker movie. Wild.
Phillips, along with Scott Silver, is writing the film, and it will explore the Joker’s path to becoming the twisted villain that he is. It will be set in the ’80s, according to Variety’s sources. What’s unclear to us is how much of an origin story this will be given Phoenix’s age. Apparently, we’ll have to wait and see. So far, the film does not yet have a release date.
Warner Bros.
Are we going to get a 
Why so serious about doubling down on Jokers, WB?
See what can happen when you heckle the wrong comedian?
TheWrap’s insiders said this new Joker origin story will include nods to Scorsese’s film. There’s also a graphic novel tie in “The Killing Joke,” which showed the Joker as a struggling stand-up comedian who snapped after “one bad day.” Phoenix is 43-years-old, so this sounds like less of the typical youth-centric origin story and more about an adult man losing his sh*t.
People weren’t necessarily thrilled to hear that the Joker is