Batman fans have clamored for a while now that Willem Dafoe would be a great fit to play The Joker in a movie at some point. And Dafoe has acknowledged that interest, like in his monologue when he hosted “Saturday Night Live” last year. But it sounds like Dafoe remains keen on playing the Clown Prince Of Crime someday, or at least, some version of him…

READ MORE: ‘Inside’ Review: Vasilis Katsoupis’ Heist Thriller With Willem Dafoe Is Formulaic But Never Dull [Berlin]

EW reports that on his “Tonight Show” interview on Tuesday night, Dafoe revealed to Jimmy Fallon he “floated an idea” to Warner Bros.

Continue reading Willem Dafoe Says He “Floated An Idea” To Warner Bros. About Him Playing A “Joker Imposter” Opposite Joaquin Phoenix at The Playlist.

Iconic genre filmmaker Joe Dante is currently promoting his Scream Factory and Shout Factory TV takeover entitled “Joe Dante’s Film Inferno.” Taking place on September 3 on Screamfactorytv.com at 3pm ET, during the “Inferno,” the legendary director of ’80s classics like “Gremlins,” “Explorers,” and many more, will introduce and guide you through seven underrated classic feature films from the Shout Factory/Scream Factory catalog, including films like Roger Corman’s “Attack of the Crab Monsters,” William Castle’s “House on Haunted Hill,” and more.

Continue reading Joe Dante Talks Almost Making The Original ‘Batman’ Film & How He Wanted John Lithgow To Play The Joker at The Playlist.

One of the most polarizing films of the last few years, at least on social media, Todd Phillips’ “Joker” movie was released two years ago today. Starring Joaquin Phoenix as the Arthur Fleck / Joker character, a mentally ill man experiencing the worst few weeks of his life until he’s pushed over the edge of sanity, the movie was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director, and ultimately won two prizes including a Best Actor Oscar for Phoenix.

Continue reading Joaquin Phoenix Is Still Open To More ‘Joker,’ But Still Unsure If A Sequel Will Be Made at The Playlist.

He who laughs last, laughs best, and thus Jared Leto might be cackling right now. In yet another twist in the Zack Snyder/ “Justice League” saga, Leto has been tapped to reprise his role as the Joker in the currently titled “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” coming to HBO Max sometime in 2021.

READ MORE: Jared Leto Pressured His Agents To Kill Todd Phillips’ ‘Joker’

While a surprise move, maybe not all that surprising given Ben Affleck—who is also returning to do some additional shooting for “Zack Snyder’s Justice League”—had a cameo role in David Ayer‘s “Suicide Squad” apprehending Leto’s Joker.

Continue reading Jared Leto Will Reprise Role As Joker In ‘Zack Snyder’s Justice League’ at The Playlist.

Confused by the dueling reports from the Hollywood trades about the development of sequels to Warner Bros.’s R-Rated box-office “Joker” smash? You’re not alone—director Todd Phillips was caught off guard as well, he admitted to a packed theater at an awards/guild screening of his record-breaking film last night. While THR reported that a “Joker” sequel directed by Phillips was in the works following an October 7 meeting with the studio, Deadline quickly pumped the break and said that no such meeting occurred.

Continue reading Todd Phillips Denies ‘Joker’ Sequel & Meeting Reports; Responds to Scorsese’s Marvel Comments at The Playlist.

LAS VEGAS – Before footage of his “Joker” was screened at CinemaCon and before it was revealed in a teaser trailer to the world, director Todd Phillips wanted everyone to know they got it wrong. Whatever there take was on his movie, it wasn’t correct. That being said, when he met with Warner Bros. marketing team he admitted he couldn’t describe the film to them. Eventually, they asked what genre it was and he said, “a tragedy.”  Judging from the teaser trailer show, that seems pretty accurate.

Continue reading Joaquin Phoenix’s ‘Joker’ Realizes His Tragic Life Is Actually A Comedy [CinemaCon] at The Playlist.

We said it from minute one: the reason why director Todd Phillips was releasing early, first-look photos of Joaquin Phoenix as the clown prince of crime in his upcoming “The Joker” movie is because set photos were about to spread everywhere. And he’s right. Currently shooting in New York, in the Bronx and Queens, paparazzi are on this film like white on rice, and more revealing pictures of Phoenix in full Joker regalia are ubiquitous on social media (see below).

Continue reading ‘The Joker’: Todd Phillips Posts Another First Look As Set Photos Spread Like Wildfire at The Playlist.

One can be forgiven if they’re deeply confused as to what the hell is going on over at Warner Bros. and DC Films. The company’s Superman is likely leaving, their Batman is already (essentially) gone, and they’re shooting a new Joker movie different from the one introduced within the DCEU less than two years ago (got that?). It’s almost as if someone doesn’t understand coherent branding strategies over at these companies.

So yes, “The Joker,” starring Joaquin Phoenix and directed by Todd Phillips (“The Hangover” trilogy) is shooting now.

Continue reading ‘Joker & Harley Quinn’ Writers Tease A ‘Bad Santa’ Meets ‘This Is Us’ Mashup at The Playlist.

Oh boy, this is going to be polarizing…

Fresh off the reveal of what Joaquin Phoenix would look like without makeup in the upcoming ‘Batman’ spin-off film, ‘Joker,’ director Todd Phillips is back and he gives fans what they’re been waiting for — full Joker makeup. But this isn’t the Joker you all know and love/fear. This is something…completely different.

Taking a cue from real clowns, Phoenix looks creepy as hell, for sure.

Continue reading ‘Joker’ Director Shares First Look At Joaquin Phoenix In Full Makeup at The Playlist.

Another day, another ‘Joker’ newsy tidbit. Fresh off the “reveal” of what Joaquin Phoenix will look like as the titular character in the ‘Batman’ spin-off film (spoiler alert — he looks like Joaquin Phoenix with shaggy hair and ugly clothes), we have a bit of casting news to share with you, dear reader. And while the name Brett Cullen might not be the sexiest name to appear in the cast that includes Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Marc Maron, and Zazie Beetz, his role seems to be one of controversy — Thomas Wayne.

Continue reading Brett Cullen Hired To Replace Alec Baldwin As Thomas Wayne In Joaquin Phoenix’s ‘Joker’ at The Playlist.

And his name is… apparently Arthur. Trying to ahead of the game as the movie prepares to shoot, and beat set photos from surfacing, director Todd Phillips has revealed the first look of Joaquin Phoenix in “The Joker” movie on his Instagram account. Of course, it’s a non-traditional look, the criminal mastermind without make-up, looking a lot like, well, Joaquin Phoenix with a bad wig. The post comes with no commentary other than the word “Arthur” that is presumably the Joker’s name before he turns into the clown prince of crime.

Continue reading ‘The Joker’: Todd Phillips Releases The First Look At Joaquin Phoenix at The Playlist.

Welp, that was super fast. Earlier this week, it was announced that Alec Baldwin would be playing Thomas Wayne in Warner Bros.‘ “The Joker” film starring Joaquin Phoenix. Well, it appears either that news was premature, the left hand wasn’t talking to the right, or the notoriously impulsive Baldwin just gonna Baldwin.

The actor told USA Today, rather haughtily, that he would not be involved with “The Joker” movie and gave it a dissing kiss off with his goodbye statement.

Continue reading Any Clown Will Do? Alec Baldwin Bails On ‘The Joker’ Movie at The Playlist.

Given the sensibilities of “Road Trip,” “Old School,” the celebrated movie version of “Starsky & Hutch” and “The Hangover” trilogy, all roads have clearly been leading filmmaker Todd Phillips to direct, what else, Warner Bros.’ dark and gritty version of “The Joker” movie starring Joaquin Phoenix. As cameras are set to roll in a number of days on September 10, and it’s literally too late to abort the entire idea, Alec Baldwin has joined the cast of Phillips’ ‘Joker’ movie as Thomas Wayne, aka Batman’s father.

Continue reading ‘The Joker’ Movie: Alec Baldwin Cast As Batman’s Dead Dad at The Playlist.

Apparently, the rumors are true. Last week, The HashTag show reported that Robert De Niro was going to appear in Todd Phillips‘ “Joker” movie alongside Joaquin Phoenix playing the clown prince of crime. Turns out this was on the money. Apparently, these talks have been in the works for weeks, and nothing is official as of yet, but if Phillips has bagged Phoenix and De Niro, he must either have a killer script or a killer pitch.

Continue reading Robert De Niro May Appear In The ‘Joker’ Movie Alongside Joaquin Phoenix at The Playlist.

We’ll be repeating it all day: the DCEU is changing. After some major shakeups in the last two weeks—Geoff Johns is out as Chief Creative Officer— Walter Hamada, known for “The Conjuring” universe, has been named the president of DC Entertainment-based film. Evidently, Warner Bros. wanted someone with a cinematic universe that actually works.

READ MORE: Matt Reeves’ ‘Batman’ Films Will Focus On A Younger Caped Crusader Without Ben Affleck

“He walked into a shitshow, and he’s trying to clean it up,” an insider told THR this week.

Continue reading Todd Philips’ Joker Film Expected To Shoot This Fall With Joaquin Phoenix & Small Budget at The Playlist.

How many Joker movies can one studio put into production? Warner Bros., the studio behind the ever-complicated DCEU, has two in production, but the day is still young. Evidently, the company, still bruised by the release of “Justice League” and struggling to find a sustainable strategy for their superhero universe, is reportedly giving Jared Leto’s Joker character his own movie. Haven’t we heard this before?

Continue reading Jared Leto’s Joker Is Getting His Own Standalone DCEU Film at The Playlist.

At this stage in the game, with all the straight-to-VOD dreck to pay the bills, Nicolas Cage‘s career is a bit of a joke to most audiences. But if so, that’s a shame, because Cage is the Oscar-winning actor gave us thrilling, gonzo performances in classics like “Adaptation,” “Leaving Las Vegas,” “Raising Arizona,” “Wild At Heart,” and “Red Rock West,” just to name a few.

Continue reading Nicolas Cage Wants To “Go Even More Off The Rails” As The Joker at The Playlist.

When you’re the type of actor that Joaquin Phoenix is, you can get away with acting a bit elusive in an interview. The enigmatic actor has made a name for himself as someone who doesn’t normally give straight answers to probing questions. So, when Yahoo interviewed him and asked about the long-rumored ‘Joker’ film by director Todd Phillips, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the actor played it very close to the vest.

Continue reading Joaquin Phoenix Plays Coy About Rumored ‘Joker’ Film at The Playlist.

Earlier this month, it was revealed that Joaquin Phoenix was Todd Phillips‘ top choice to play the Joker in a standalone movie that would pretend that Jared Leto in “Suicide Squad” never happened. Of course, it was all subject to Warner Bros. signing off on the casting idea, and frankly, who wouldn’t approve the choice? However, if Phoenix is playing Batman’s greatest villain, it appears no one has told him about it yet.

Continue reading Joaquin Phoenix Doesn’t Seem To Know Anything About That Joker Movie He’s Supposed To Star In at The Playlist.

There reaches a time in every actor’s life where you can’t go around making ends meet playing hitmen for Lynne Ramsay (“You Were Never Really Here“), Jesus (“Mary Magdalene“), or acclaimed cartoonists (“Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far On Foot“). The day has arrived for Joaquin Phoenix to get that superhero movie money, by playing one of the most iconic villains of all time.

Continue reading Joaquin Phoenix To Play The Joker In Todd Phillips’ Standalone DC Movie at The Playlist.

Various career steps have led to Darren Aronofsky‘s completely off the wall thriller “mother!” which opens this weekend. However, things might’ve gone very differently if Warner Bros. had agreed to back his daring vision for Batman way back in the day.

After Joel Schumacher destroyed the franchise with “Batman Forever” and “Batman & Robin,” Warner Bros.

Continue reading Darren Aronofsky Says ‘The Joker’ Spinoff Sounds Like His Old ‘Batman’ Pitch at The Playlist.

Given all of the recent news about upcoming DC movies focused in part or whole on The Joker, fans might expect that Jared Leto is already preparing for his return to the role by sending Margot Robbie dead animals or just generally being insufferable to his co-stars. But even Leto seems a little unsure of what part he may be playing in the character’s future, according to a recent interview.

Continue reading Jared Leto Admits He’s Confused About Warner Bros.’ Joker Plans at The Playlist.

We tell children to dream big, but in the movie business, working with adults, there’s a difference between being aspirational and being plain delusional. Warner Bros. hasn’t quite sorted out that balance with their continually messy development plans for DC Films, and today comes another indication everyone involved is throwing stuff at the wall and seeing what sticks.

When it was revealed last week that WB and DC were making an origin story movie about The Joker, not starring Jared Leto, the early chatter was that Martin Scorsese was going to produce the film that’s being directed by  Todd Phillips (“The Hangover,” “Old School“).

Continue reading Warner Bros. Want Leonardo DiCaprio For The Joker Movie at The Playlist.

What.is.going.on over at DC Films and Warner Bros? The film industry is suffering from whiplash in the last 24 hours thanks to schizophrenic news coming out of Warner Bros.’ DCEU. First up, you’ve got a spin-off origin Joker film announced last night coming from producer Martin Scorsese and director Todd Phillips, and it was meant to live outside of the current DC Films continuity; yes, this would be a new Joker not played by Jared Leto but possibly someone much younger.

Continue reading Joker & Harley Quinn Movie Coming From ‘Crazy Stupid Love’ Directors at The Playlist.

Welcome to another edition of The Playlist Podcast, a discussion about film news and other film and television related items.

On this episode, I’m joined by Playlist Editor-in-Chief Rodrigo Perez to discuss the news about the Joker origin story, set to be directed by Todd Phillips (“The Hangover,” “Old School“) and produced by Martin Scorsese.

Continue reading Joker Origin Story Movie Announced & We’re Shocked And Confused [Podcast] at The Playlist.