Possible MINOR SPOILERS ahead…
The final trailer of the highly anticipated Joker dropped a few hours ago to immensely positive feedback from fans and critics alike. Many are already expecting plenty of awards season buzz surrounding the film, especially in regards to Joaquin Phoenix’s transformative performance as the iconic character.
All the marketing materials that have dropped so far have been pretty vague, rightfully so. We know that the film which centres around DC Comics’ most revered villain, The Joker, isn’t based on any particular DC storyline, but rather a wholly original screenplay penned by Todd Phillips. The film will also feature Batman comics character, Thomas Wayne, though details surrounding the character have been kept hush-hush.
I have a source who has read an early draft of the screenplay and he’s shared some intriguing details with me in regards to certain characters and plot points that have been largely been kept in the dark. (Note that there have been rewrites since he first read the script, so there could be some changes in the final cut we see in cinemas. But, I wouldn’t publish something if I didn’t genuinely believe that my source is credible.)
Let’s start with the biggest, most shocking piece of information I received. It’s been previously reported that Thomas Wayne (Brett Cullen) will be an edgier character than his comic book counterpart. That does indeed seem to be the case. My source tells me that one of the plot points explored in the script he read does touch on a fan theory that has been circling around the net concerning Thomas’ ties to The Joker. I’ll spare you the details as I highly doubt the filmmakers want the information out. But I will say that Thomas Wayne is a “pretty integral part of the film.”
For those who are wondering if Arthur Fleck (who goes on to become The Joker in the film) has any ties to the mob, the answer is no. According to my source, this isn’t that kind of movie at all. Also, don’t expect Joker to face off against Gotham City’s police force or anything of that sort. This will be a full-on character study of Arthur Fleck’s slow descent into madness. The Joker in this Todd Phillips film will be very different from Heath Ledger’s version, or any other incarnation of the character — it’s more psychopathic in nature.
As far as Robert De Niro’s character is concerned, we’ve seen bits of it in the latest trailer. My source says De Niro’s character, who plays a talk show host, brings Arthur Fleck on his show to poke fun of him (as seen in the trailer), which contributes to Arthur’s transformation. He’s also the “closest thing we get to an ‘antagonist’ in the film.”
Official synopsis of Joker:
Director Todd Phillips Joker centres around the iconic arch nemesis and is an original, standalone fictional story not seen before on the big screen. Phillips’ exploration of Arthur Fleck, who is indelibly portrayed by Joaquin Phoenix, is of a man struggling to find his way in Gotham’s fractured society. A clown-for-hire by day, he aspires to be a stand-up comic at night…but finds the joke always seems to be on him. Caught in a cyclical existence between apathy and cruelty, Arthur makes one bad decision that brings about a chain reaction of escalating events in this gritty character study.
Joker hits Malaysian cinemas on 3 October 2019.
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