Unfortunately,Joker: Folie à Deux’s critical and commercial failure has cast a shadow on the possibility of similarDCand Marvel projects. Todd Phillips' 2019Jokerwas a bold experiment that certainly paid off.Jokerreached a record-breaking $1.06 billion at the box officeon a $55 million budget, received unprecedented critical acclaim, and earned the Arthur Fleck star an Academy Award for Best Actor. Due to its high quality and unique take on an iconic character, Todd Phillips’Jokersparked conversations about the true potential in comic book adaptations.
Five years later, Todd Phillips and Joaquin Phoenix returned to the world ofJokerdespite the first movie’s inherently standalone nature and open ending.Joker: Folie à Deuxbroke box office records, but they were all on the opposite side of the spectrum. TheJokersequelgrossed $206 million on a$200 million budget, breaking records such asthe worst second-weekend decline for a comic book movie, at 81% between its first and second weekend in theaters.Joker: Folie à Deuxalso claimed a spot among the worst-reviewed comic book movies of all time, with a 31% audience and critics' score onRotten Tomatoes.
Joker 2 Sabotaged Joker’s Excellent Demonstration Of The Potential Of Supervillain Focused Movies
Joker: Folie A Deux Undid The Work Done By Todd Phillips' First Movie
Todd Phillips’Jokerproved that comic book characters could star in serious, self-contained, standalone movies that dive deep into their protagonists' psyche without the need to follow an established format or rely on action and visual effects to capture the audience’s attention. AfterJoker’s massive success, the concept of director-driven solo movies based on DC villains — or any individual comic book characters — became a popular idea.The Joker’s popularity made him the best choice for a solo film, but many other Batman antagonists also have decades' worth of stories that could follow in the footsteps of Todd Phillips’Joker.
Todd Phillips was criticized for taking too many creative liberties — something that was previously considered one ofJoker’s biggest strengths
Todd Phillips’Joker:Folie à Deuxproposed even bolder ideas than its predecessor, but they failed to capture audiences and critics.Joker:Folie à Deux’s subversion of the first movie’s plot and themes, musical numbers, limited Joker screentime, and downer ending all contributed to the sequel’s poor performance.Joker:Folie à Deux’s controversial characteristicsnot only left a bad taste in the audience’s mouth, but also cast a shadow onJoker’s legacy. Todd Phillips was criticized for taking too many creative liberties — something that was previously considered one ofJoker’s biggest strengths. Now, giving a director the same degree of creative freedom seems like a liability.
The Superhero Genre Is Missing Out On A Major Untapped Part Of The Comics
Villain-Based Stories Have A Lot Of Potential For High-Budget Solo Movies And Shows
AlthoughJoker:Folie à Deux’s poor reception overshadowedJoker’s groundbreaking success,Jokerstill showcases potential that few comic book adaptations have taken advantage of since 2019.Joker:Folie à Deuxbroke undesired box office records at the same time thatThe Penguinblew audiences away. Lauren LeFranc’s top-ratedThe Penguinfollows a similar model toJoker.The Penguindoesn’t feature Batmanand doesn’t set up future projects explicitly, nor does it attempt to redeem Oz Cobb, but it focuses on a single Batman villain and delves deep into his psyche.
After The Penguin, I Actually Don’t Want The Joker To Be In The Batman 2
The Batman 2 doesn’t make sense to introduce the Joker as the primary villain, and The Penguin just proved what the Batverse can do without him.
The Penguinonce again proved that DC villains are an untapped goldmine for live-action movies and shows centered exclusively around their protagonists. DC villains such as Deadshot, Sinestro, Catwoman, Bizarro, and Poison Ivy have led, if not their own comic book runs, then at least their own events and arcs. Other villains like Mister Freeze, Scarecrow, Lobo, Brainiac, Two-Face, and the Riddler also have well-defined backstories and motivations that could inform solo movies and shows just as well-written, well-shot, and overall just as exceptionally made asJokerandThe Penguin.
I Hope DC’s Supervillain Movie Future Can Prove The Potential Of The Concept Once More
The DCU Will Place More Focus On The Villains' Own Stories
AfterJoker:Folie à Deux’s failure andThe Penguin’s success, no other self-contained solo projects starring DC villains have been announced. Instead, Warner Bros. has confirmed aClayfacesolo movie set in James Gunn’s DCU, officially put in motion after Clayface’s on-screen debut inCreature Commandos.A Deathstroke and Bane movie is also reportedly in development at DC Studios, and there are a handful of movie and TV projects that are currently on the back burner while the DCU’s “Gods and Monsters” chapter takes shape. Some of these projects could be centered on other DC villains.
DC’s Newest Official Batman Villain Movie Could Show Us DCU’s Dark Knight Before His Own Solo Movie
Batman is an important figure in Gotham’s world of crime, and the self-contained DCU Clayface movie could give the first look at him in live-action.
While DCU projects likeClayfaceand the unnamed Bane & Deathstroke movie are part of an interconnected franchise, they could focus exclusively on their respective protagonists, similarly to howJokeronly featured Thomas, Martha, and Bruce Wayne as minor characters andThe PenguinusedThe Batman’s lore as background for its own story. Villains like Clayface, Bane, and Deathstroke could later appear as primary or secondary antagonists, anti-heroes, or even allies to DC heroes. Each of these characters' subsequent DCU appearances will definitely benefit from the character development established by their respective solo movies or shows.
