As the new DC Studios led by James Gunn and Peter Safran prepares to reboot and relaunch the DC cinematic universe beginning withSuperman: Legacynext year, this year is a relatively quiet year for DC. Compared to recent years that have consistently seen the release of anywhere between two and four major DC movies, the major comic-book publisher only has one feature film set to release this year. That film isJoker: Folie à Deux, the sequel to the standaloneJokerfilm from 2019, which was directed by Todd Philips and starred Joaquin Phoenix in the titular role.
The R-ratedJokerfilm, which was not connected to any broader universe and did not feature Batman whatsoever, was a bit of a gamble for DC at the time. The DCEU was still struggling to establish a firm foothold in the aftermath of 2017’sJustice League, and the decision to produce a new film outside that universe – especially a solo film centered on a Batman villain rather than the hero himself – was cause for a lot of debate.
On top of that,Jokerwound upbeing a fairly controversial film, as some objected to the film’s depiction of mental health and its framing of the central character. However, despite all of that,Jokerturned out to be one of DC’s most successful films in years, both critically and financially. As a result, a sequel quickly entered development.
Joker: Folie a Deux
Joker: Folie à Deux is the sequel to Todd Phillips' critically acclaimed comic book thriller Joker. Reprising his Academy Award-winning performance as the failed comedian Arthur Fleck, Joaquin Phoenix revisits the iconic DC character alongside Lady Gaga, who makes her debut as Joker’s lover Harley Quinn in this standalone continuity of the DC Universe.
Folie à Deux, which sees both Philips and Phoenix return with Lady Gaga joining the cast as Harley Quinn, is set to release this fall and there is already doubt about whether it can recreate the same level of success. Recently, it was reported that the budget for the film has ballooned to a hefty $200 million, nearly quadruple that of the first film. Even though much of the same creative team has returned for theJokersequel, this dramatic increase in the film’s budget indicates that the second film is likely to be a much larger affair than its predecessor. Here’s why that’s cause for concern:
The First Film’s Budget and Box Office
The firstJokerfilm was a risk for DC and WB, but that risk was mitigated to some degree by giving the film a much smaller budget to operate with. 2019’sJokerreportedly carried a production budget of just $55 million, making it easily one of the cheapest mainstream comic-book movies produced within the past decade. For further context, the films from the DCEU franchise with the lowest production budgets were 2019’sShazam!and 2020’sBirds of Prey, which both carried moderate budgets of about $85 million. Meanwhile, the lowest budget for any film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe came with 2015’sAnt-Man, which was made on a budget of $130 million.
On that relatively small budget,Jokerwas able to become one of the highest-grossing DC movies of all time. The film brought in $335 million in North America and an astounding $728 million overseas, totaling out toover $1 billion globally. It is only the fourth DC film in history to do so – followingThe Dark Knight,The Dark Knight RisesandAquaman. While there was likely at least $100 million spent on marketing and distributing the film, that is easily the biggest margin of profit for any DC film to date.
Jokerwas an unexpected smash hit, and it was even able to translate that success into a strong presence during that year’s awards season. At the Oscars, specifically,Jokerwas nominated for 11 awards, making it the most nominated film at the ceremony that year. While it only won two of those awards – Best Actor (Phoenix) and Best Original Score – its ability to compete at that high level was still a major win for everyone involved.
Related:Will Joker: Folie à Deux Be as Controversial as the Original Film?
Joker Isn’t a Traditional Blockbuster
With the budget for theJokersequel being upped to $200 million, it appears that WB and DC are taking a much more blockbuster-level approach to the sequel. Thatimmense budgetrivals those of some of the biggest comic-book films of the last few years. Movies likeDoctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,Spider-Man: No Way Home,The Flash, andAquaman and the Lost Kingdomall carried the same $200 million production price tag. Within that context, it appears that we can expectFolie à Deuxto be a film with a story told on a massive scale.
The issue here is that the approach flies in the face of what made the firstJokerwork in the first place. 2019’sJokerwas able to connect with audiences precisely because it was so drastically different from every other comic-book movie that was populating the multiplex at the time. It wasn’t a massive blockbuster film that was full of crazy effects, action sequences and spectacle. It was a relatively grounded and street-level story that was focused on the personal journey and descent of its lead character. It was never intended to be a blockbuster movie. Instead, it was positioned as more of a prestige and awards-bait movie for DC; one that just happened to spark fire at the box office.
By upping the stakes and budget of the sequel to this immense degree, it appears that DC and WB have completely abandoned that approach withFolie à Deux.They are treatingJokerlike they would any other generic superhero film that made a splash at the box office. They’re doubling down on the title by throwing more money at it and hoping that they can repeat the same success over again.
Related:Joker: Folie a Deux Draws Inspiration from a Famous Musical
Does Joker Really Need a Sequel?
WB and DC are flirting with disaster by taking this approach. First of all, we don’t even know for certain that audiences are interested in aJokersequel to begin with. Again, one of the biggest strengths of the first movie is that it was not connected to any other existing stories. It was a one-off that was telling a new story with a mostly different approach than what had been seen before. On top of that, the film’s ambiguous ending sparked a lot of heated discussion and served as a strong conclusion to the story that was being told. 2019’sJokerwas a film that worked incredibly well by standing on its own two feet; to return to it with a sequel would throw a lot of that goodwill out the window, potentially putting off some audiences.
While the casting of Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn is promising, the film is also reportedly a musical – or features a few musical numbers at the very least – and live-action musicals have been notoriously bombing one after another at the box office over the last few years.The Color Purple,West Side Story,In the Heightsand, most recently,Mean Girlshave all failed to gain any traction at the box office. While WB’s ownWonkamanaged to becomea holiday season hit, it did so by leaving essentially any signs of it being a musical out of the marketing entirely. If audiences have the same reaction toFolie à Deuxas they have to most other recent musicals, the film may be doomed long before it even hits theaters.
Joker: Folie à Deuxmay very well end up being great. We would love to see that. DC really needs a win right now, and – while she’s already won for Best Original Song once – it would also be immensely satisfying and deserved for Lady Gaga to get an Oscar win for acting just like Phoenix did for the first film.
However, the idea that this film is attempting to be a much more accessible blockbuster film (which is typically the case when immense budgets like this are in play) is concerning to say the least. It speaks to a studio that is chasing the success of the first film rather than prioritizing the quality of storytelling and filmmaking at the core of it all. Though, with a studio like WB that has now thrown away three features for minor tax write-offs, would any of us really be surprised if that was the case?
