WB has greenlit a sequel to Joker, with director Todd Phillips and star Joaquin Phoenix set to return, according to THR. Phillips will once again co-write the script with Scott Silver.
This news shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering that Joker not only opened as a critical darling (read our review) but has just cleared $1 billion at the box office, the fourth DC movie to do so (two of the other three are also connected to Batman, coincidentally). Bringing back the director, writer, and star for a sequel was a no-brainer, especially after WB has struggled to compete with the superhero extravaganzas offered by Marvel Studios and the House of Mouse.
WB’s latest comic book success could push the studio to develop more gritty DC origin movies like Joker. In fact, Phillips reportedly pitched “a portfolio of DC characters’ origin stories” to Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich, per THR, which confirms that the director left with the rights to at least one other DC story. Which story that might be is unclear, but it wouldn’t be too far-fetched to guess that it’s another villain origin story. After all, exploring the bad guys is still a new-ish direction for WB, which has spent the last few decades highlighting the heroes.
Besides Suicide Squad, WB has rarely put so much focus on the lives of DC’s villains. But Joker has shown the studio that telling stories about evildoers can not only provide new avenues for exploring its fledgling DC movie universe but be incredibly lucrative. The success of Joker might mean Phillips and other filmmakers can now explore the origins of Lex Luthor, Hush, Sinestro, and others.
It seems that its very early days for this Joker sequel, which we likely won’t see for a few years yet. In the meantime here’s the slate of upcoming comic-book movies and when to expect them.
