Oscar-winner Robert De Niro is in talks to join Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker origin film.
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Michael Zorn/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock (9709240dv)
Robert De Niro gestures while introducing a performance by Bruce Springsteen at the 72nd annual Tony Awards at Radio City Music Hall, in New York
The 72nd Annual Tony Awards – Show, New York, USA – 10 Jun 2018
Todd Phillips is set to direct the film, and a script has been written by Phillips and Scott Silver.
Phoenix will portray a younger Joker in a film with a much more moderate budget and intimate cast than larger DC productions. The film is supposed to delve into the dark and twisted past of the Clown Prince of Crime and explore the events that set him on a path of murder and mayhem.
While official plot points are extremely scarce, the only real information devolved to the public is the film’s setting of 1980’s Gotham.
Should De Niro reach a deal with DC, he will portray a talk show host who plays a major role in the creation of the titular character. While no one origin story of The Joker is taken as canon, while no major talk show host jumps out, the only character even close is The David Endocrine scene from The Dark Knight Returns, in which a newly reformed Joker appears to the public to better his image but quickly retracts and massacres the studio audience.
De Niro a major Hollywood powerhouse would bring incredible justification to the film and raise expectations.
Are you excited for the solo Joker film? Who else would you like to see cast in the film?
