“This film is for the arts not the charts”: Joker 2’s Predicted Box Office Numbers Being $25 Million Lesser Than Joker (2019) Hints Its 1 Decision Could Hugely Backfire
- Joker: Folie à Deux will be the second DC supervillain movie of the year after The Penguin series.
- Joker 2 is predicted to earn upwards of $70 million which is at least $10 million less than the opening collection of the first movie.
- The film's team has pushed back on the claims that it is a musical as they have insisted that the film is not one.
Fans of the DC supervillain universe are in for a treat this year. Not one, but two projects focused on two of Batman’s biggest nemeses- The Penguin and Joker. The first happens to be a spin-off series following the early life of the mobster The Penguin. This series is a part of the DC saga that Matt Reeve started in 2022 with The Batman, starring Robert Pattinson in the lead role.
Next up is Joker 2, a sequel to the 2019 movie starring Joaquin Phoenix as the titular character. The buzz for this movie was supposed to be extremely high given how well the first movie performed. However, that does not seem to be the case as the box office predictions suggest that it is going to underperform in comparison to the 2019 movie. The reason behind this primarily seems to be one that many have pointed out.
Joker 2 Might End Up Underporming Because of This Reason
Few supervillains have as much hype as Arthur Fleck/Joker. From Cesar Romero in the 1960s to Heath Ledger in 2008, many actors have portrayed the character in live-action movies. The most recent adaptation of the character is that of Joaquin Phoenix, which achieved immense praise from the public and critics.
The sequel Joker: Folie à Deux is all set to be released next month, but the box office predictions are not looking too good. Recently, The Hollywood Reporter has reported that the movie is looking to open with over $70 million in earnings. This implies that the movie is at least $25 million behind the opening collection of the first movie.
The reason behind this kind of projection might be the fact that the movie looks somewhat like a musical, and this is despite the team insisting otherwise. Here is what some people had to say on X regarding this whole ordeal:
A movie of the superhero genre might not bode well with the audience if it begins to look like a musical. Even so, these are only predictions so only time will tell how the movie will actually perform.
The Joker: Folie à Deux Team Claims The Film is Not a Musical
According to the team of Joker: Folie à Deux, the film is not a musical. It is just a movie where the characters break out into song whenever they feel short of words. During the film’s Venice Film Festival (via Deadline), Lady Gaga insisted that it was not a musical. She said:
I think the way we approach music in this film is very special and extremely nuanced. I wouldn’t necessarily say that this is a musical. In a lot of ways it’s very different. The way the music is used is to give the characters a way to express what they need to say because the scene and dialogue is just not enough.
Director Todd Phillips said something similar to Variety. He claimed that most of the music is dialogue. So, Arthur breaks into singing when he does not have the words to convey his feelings. Despite these claims, it has to be noted that the movie is a musical by definition. According to NoFilmSchool.com, a musical is a film where,
Characters break into song and choreographed dance routines, allowing their emotions, thoughts, and motivations to be expressed in a lyrical and often larger-than-life manner.
The film will see Arthur (Phoenix) meeting Lee (Gaga) while he is institutionalized at Arkham. He falls in love with Lee while simultaneously discovering the musical side of himself.
Joker: Folie à Deux will be in theaters on October 4.
