‘Joker’ Sequel Not in the Works Just Yet Despite Report
A reliable movie site says that there are no deals for a sequel as of now and director Todd Phillips is not in any negotiations to work on the supposed second movie.
AceShowbiz – Is “Joker” sequel already in the works? Not so fast. Report surfaced earlier on The Hollywood Reporter that director Todd Phillips is likely to return as director for the follow-up to the hit R-rated movie, and reteam with co-writer Scott Silver to pen the script for the sequel.
While fans may have rejoiced at the prospect of seeing Joaquin Phoenix as the psychopath villain again, another site has begged to differ. Contrary to the previous story, Deadline says that currently there are no deals for a sequel, nor there are any negotiations with Phillips or Silver to return for the sequel.
In its report, THR also claimed that “The Hangover” filmmaker pitched to Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich an idea to develop a portfolio of DC characters’ origin stories, a week after the release of “Joker”. Deadline also debunks this claim, calling it “flat false as earlier stories that Martin Scorsese contemplated directing the first ‘Joker’.” Scorsese was at one point on board to produce the movie, but dropped out due to his crowded schedule.
Sources say the reported October 7 meeting between Phillips and Emmerich never took place, and that the director never wanted to follow “Joker” by overseeing other DC character films. The site notes that what Phillips once said was when “Joker” was in its inception, there were discussions of a DC Black initiative. But he chose to focus on “Joker” instead and abandoned the DC Black initiative.
Similarly, Variety reports that “insiders shot down reports that Warner Bros. and DC are talking about having Phillips do origin stories for other comic-book characters, revealing what cracked on their trek to the dark side. Any ‘Joker’ follow-up will take years to pull off and DC has a busy slate.”
“Joker” is the seventh-highest-grossing film of 2019 and becomes the first R-rated film to pass the billion-dollar mark at the worldwide box office. While Phoenix has not signed up for a second movie, the actor has several times toyed with ideas for a possible sequel.