Despite Warner Bros. cutting costs amidst studio shakeups, a new report says that Joker 2's budget is double that of the original film. Joaquin Phoenix led the cast of the 2019 predecessor as Arthur Fleck, a struggling clown with dreams of becoming a stand-up comedian. As his mental state continues to deteriorate and his frustrations with '70s Gotham grows, Arthur goes on to inspire a violent countercultural revolution and become the iconic villain known as the Joker.
Co-written and directed by The Hangover's Todd Phillips, Joker debuted to mixed-to-positive reviews from critics, who largely praised Phoenix's performance, Phillips' direction and Hildur Guðnadóttir's score, though criticized its handling of its larger themes and familiar storytelling. With the film having gone on to gross over $1 billion, the first and only R-rated film to do so, and winning two Oscars, all eyes were on Phillips and Phoenix to deliver a follow-up, namely as the DC Extended Universe found its own Joker floundering with Jared Leto scoring negative reviews in Suicide Squad. The sequel would finally be confirmed in mid-2022 with Phillips, Phoenix and co-writer Scott Silver all returning and being joined by Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn, and it appears WB has a lot of faith in Joker: Folie à Deux.
As the studio continues to come under fire for its radical changes, Variety has released a new report offering an update on the future of Warner Bros.' DC projects. Included in the report is the confirmation that Joker 2 is not only moving forward, but is reportedly getting double the budget of the original film in order to pay the salaries of both star Joaquin Phoenix and co-writer/director Todd Phillips. The estimated budget for Joker 2 is said to be $150 million, more than double that of the first Joker's estimated $55-70 million production budget.
Following the Warner Bros. Discovery merger, new studio CEO David Zaslav has found himself in the hot seat from fans and creatives in the industry for his slashing of multiple projects, including the mostly-finished Batgirl and Scoob! A Holiday Haunt. A variety of factors have been given to explain the films' cancellations, ranging from Zaslav looking to make up the $3 billion in debt he inherited from previous CEO Toby Emmerich to Batgirl testing poorly in its early screenings, though the latter has seen conflicting reports indicating it performed as well as Black Adam and Shazam: Fury of the Gods, both of which are moving forward. Despite multiple reports indicating the film would be safe, sources have recently begun saying The Flash movie is also in the crosshairs for a potential cancellation amidst Ezra Miller's ongoing legal problems.
Unlike Batgirl and Scoob! 2, however, Joker: Folie à Deux has a lot more riding in its favor of moving forward thanks to its record-setting run at the box office and audience anticipation for a sequel to the 2019 film. Though the sequel getting double the budget of the original may come as a surprise during WB's cost-cutting steps, previous reports have indicated that Phoenix and Phillips were getting raises for the sequel and with Joker 2's musical approach and addition of Gaga's Harley Quinn, the pieces are in place for an increase in the budget. While audiences await further details on the Clown Prince of Crime's return, they can revisit the first Joker movie streaming on HBO Max now.
Source: Variety
