Film fans have noticed an Easter egg in Joker which appears to link the Joaquin Phoenix-starring movie to the 1989 Batman film.
Todd Phillips’ Oscar-nominated DC film was released last year, starring Phoenix as the titular character.
Among those to spot this latest Joker Easter egg was the Twitter account @MovieDetail, who pointed out that an oil painting noticed by the Joker — played by Jack Nicholson — in the 1989 film can also be seen in the background of a Joker scene set in Arthur Fleck’s mother’s apartment.
In Batman (1989 )a painting the joker has his eyes on is featured in The joker( 2019 ) pic.twitter.com/lMgjvBIWw9
— Movie Details (@moviedetail) January 28, 2020
The painting seen in both films is a replica of Thomas Gainsborough’s ‘The Blue Boy’ from 1770. The real painting currently hangs in the Huntington Library in California.
Back in October, Phillips confirmed that his film also includes a subtle nod to the 1960s Batman TV series.
Speaking last week, the director admitted that he wasn’t “prepared” for the controversy which met the release of Joker last year, adding that he was “baffled” about the criticism.
“I was taken aback by people talking about the level of violence in the movie as if it was irresponsible, when to Joaquin [Phoenix] and me, it had felt like the most responsible portrayal of violence I’d seen in a long time in movies,” Phillips said.
