Joker is one of the most highly anticipated movies of the year, and now that it’s started appearing at film festivals and getting rave reviews, we are even more keen to see it.
But some fans may be disappointed to learn that Joaquin Phoenix’s take on the character definitely won’t be connected to the wider DC Extended Universe. This was a choice made very deliberately by the movie’s director Todd Phillips during the development process.
So, if you were expecting a cheeky cameo in Robert Pattinson’s The Batman, you’ll be left disappointed, sadly.
Warner Bros first brought the DCEU to life with Man of Steel and Batman v Superman, and let’s be honest, they weren’t amazing movies. So we can understand why Phillips might not want his Joker film to be associated with the other DC films.
According to CinemaBlend, Phillips explained his decision at the film’s premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival, saying, “It’s not really connected to that [DC Movie] Universe. And it was really intentionally not.
“I mean the original idea when I went to [Warner Bros.] with the idea was not just about one movie, but about a label – sort of a side label to DC, where you can do these kind of character study, low-rent, low-budget movies, where you get a filmmaker to come in and do some deep dive into a character.
“So it was never meant to connect, so I don’t see it connecting to anything in the future. I think this is just this movie, you know?”
Because Phoenix’s performance is receiving so much praise, it’s understandable that DC fans would want him to make an appearance in an upcoming DCEU movie, but it now seems unlikely he’ll ever return to the role.
It does make a lot of sense, though, because Joker is set in Gotham City in 1981, so if he was meant to be part of the wider DCEU, he’d have aged quite a bit so it wouldn’t make much sense if he was going against present-day heroes from the DCEU.
Also, Jared Leto’s Joker is already part of the DCEU after making his debut in Suicide Squad. A lot of his performance wasn’t used and fans weren’t exactly impressed with what they were given, but it would be very confusing to insert Phoenix’s version into the story at this point in time.
So, while it’s disappointing, it does make sense that Joker is a standalone film and that he won’t appear in The Batman.
Joker hits cinemas on October 4.