UPDATE: This news, which was first posted by The Hollywood Reporter, is now being refuted by Deadline, who claim their own sources say Joker 2 is not actually happening. You can read more at Deadline, and we will continue to update this story.
Todd Phillips’ movie Joker was nothing short of a box office success. Having passed The Dark Knight in box office sales, it’s no surprise that there was a lot of love for Phillips’ dark origins story of the Clown Prince of Crime.
That success has led to the studio, and Phillips himself, green lighting a sequel. While a sequel may make fans groan, asking why a sequel is necessary, the Joker’s story almost calls for it. Even from this movie, speculation has fans asking if the Joker of this film is, in fact, the real Joker. At the San-Diego Comic Con in 2018, DC officials discussed why there are at least three confirmed Jokers in the DC Universe and how that fact tied multiple aspects of various story lines together.
Related Article: ‘Joker’: Arthur Fleck’s Five Most Haunting Quotes
Joker even says in Tthe Killing Joke, the storyline that Joker is said to be based off of, “If I’m going to have a past, I prefer it to be multiple choice!”
The Hollywood Reporter has released an article showing that Warner Bros. gave the go-ahead to start work on a second Joker movie. Phillips will once again direct, accompanied by writer Scott Silver. Silver being the screenwriter that co-wrote the script for the first Joker movie. And while there is no definite confirmation, as of yet, Joaquin Phoenix is expected to reprise his role as Arthur Fleck.
It was reported, in the Hollywood Reporter article, that Phillips had approached Warner Bros. about a continued series of origin stories for DC villains. He was denied the rights to all of the DC villains catalogue, however they have allegedly approved him taking on the stories for one or two characters.
Though the first Joker movie hinted at Batman’s origins, Phillips is not likely to include anything about the hero in the sequel. Since The Batman is already in production, with Robert Pattinson playing the iconic role, the story is being left to the team associated with that movie.
It is rumored, according to Hollywood Reporter, that there are a few characters on Phillips’ approved list. Among those are the stories of Darkseid, and Superman villain Lex Luthor.
Joker is only the fourth DC movie to break the $1 billion mark at the box office. The others were Aquaman, the Dark Knight, and the Dark Knight Rises.
Related Article: Todd Phillips Reveals Sophie’s Fate in ‘Joker’
