Warner Bros. has released it’s first trailer for Joker, directed by Todd Philips (Old School, Hangover Trilogy) and starring Joaquin Phoenix. The clip gives us a glimpse of Batman’s most classic villain and the origin of his descent into darkness.
The trailer features portions of Arthur Fleck’s life as he works as a clown/comedian in Gotham City. Falling on hard times, Arthur seems to realize that Gotham is spiraling out of control, and that bringing a smile onto people’s faces might not be his calling card. As he gets beaten up by some street thugs, Arthur slowly molds into his deranged state as the Joker.
Confused on whether Joaquin’s Joker has any connection to Jared Leto’s version? Well perhaps the answer is to look at what Warner Bros. has done recently. The studio has tried to establish an interconnected universe, yet it’s attempts with Man of Steel, Batman vs Superman, and Suicide Squad, have not replicated Marvel’s success. Warner Bros. has since focused more on standalone films and is bringing more “sub-brand” projects to the big screen (new version of Suicide Squad and Horror-take on Aquaman). This version is also produced by Martin Scorsese and has been inspired by his 1976 dark noir classic Taxi Driver.
Joker will hit theaters on October 4, 2019.
