Joker director Todd Philips has made it known that his movie is a one-off character study on the Joker and he has no plans for a sequel, but Joaquin Phoenix seems to have other ideas.
Speaking with IGN, Philips said, “We have no plans for a sequel. We always pitched it as one movie, and that’s it.”
According to CinemaBlend, Philips has also explained how his movie isn’t connected to the wider DCEU.
“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?”
Phoenix, who played the Joker, however, isn’t quite ready to close the door on the character.
In an interview on Popcorn with Peter Travers, Phoenix said he hasn’t been able to stop thinking about the Joker role and what the future might bring.
“You know, I wouldn’t have thought about this as my dream role. But now, honestly, I can’t stop thinking about it,” Phoenix said.
“I talked to Todd a lot about what else we might be able to do, in general, just to work together, but also specifically, if there’s something else we can do with Joker that might be interesting. So, it ended up being a dream role. It’s nothing that I really wanted to do prior to working on this movie.”
Travers tells Phoenix it’s a surprise to hear him say that as he famously turned down the role of Marvel’s Doctor Strange because it would have meant signing a multi-movie deal.
“I don’t know that there is [more to do],” Phoenix said. “Me and Todd would still be shooting now if we could, right? Because it seemed endless, the possibilities of where we can go with the character.”
Travers then asks if he’s dreamed of being in a scene with Batman, but Phoenix was quick to shut that down, “No, I haven’t had that dream.”
The way the film ends could be a set up for a sequel as he indirectly sets a young Bruce Wayne on the path to becoming Batman. And with Robert Pattinson’s The Batman coming out in 2021 fans have been hoping to see the two characters meet, but it doesn’t look like that’ll be the case – especially because Phoenix’s Joker would be too old to fight Pattinson’s Batman.
But hey, we can dream, right (even if Joaquin doesn’t)?