The Untold Truth Of Joaquin Phoenix's Joker Film

As revealed by cast member Zazie Beetz, the movie was rewritten as it was filmed. During an interview with MTV (via io9), Beetz went into detail about the filming process, recalling, "Literally, we would go into Todd's trailer and write the scene for the night and then do it. During hair and makeup we'd memorize those lines and then do them and then we'd reshoot that three weeks later." The frequent rewrites and reshoots suggest a more improvisational approach than most comic book movie directors take, which isn't necessarily a bad thing; it implies the final product will be a more collaborative work incorporating ideas from the cast into the director's vision. 

Although Phillips' approach is unusual, it isn't without precedent. Iron Man, for instance, was also written and further developed as it was filmed. According to Jeff Bridges, who played antagonist Obadiah Stane, the entire project was based around an outline; Bridges and Robert Downey Jr. would improvise their way through scenes under the guidance of director Jon Favreau in their trailers while the crew waited on the set. If Iron Man was shot in such a loose manner and still turned out to be the smash hit that launched the MCU, there's definitely hope for Joaquin Phoenix's Joker.

Casting changes are fairly common in Hollywood, and Joker is no exception — in fact, the film was forced to adapt when two of its biggest names ended pulling out of the project prematurely. In addition to the surprising hires of Phillips and Phoenix, acclaimed director Martin Scorsese raised eyebrows when he signed on to help steer development as a co-producer — but he left the project in July 2018 due to being overextended by prior commitments, and was replaced by Emma Tillinger Koskoff (The Wolf of Wall Street), a producer who's worked with Scorsese for years. 

Another high-profile name who made headlines when he left the project was Alec Baldwin, briefly cast as Thomas Wayne, father of future Batman Bruce Wayne. Baldwin abruptly pulled out of the project just two days after it was announced he would be playing the part, chalking his departure up to scheduling issues and shrugging, "I'm sure there are 25 guys who can play that part."

Todd Phillips elected to film on location in New York, which meant seemingly anyone with a camera in the Big Apple took a shot at trying to snap photos of Phoenix and his co-stars in costume. Phillips found himself becoming increasingly annoyed by the paparazzi taking grainy photos from whatever long-distance angle they could muster, so he decided to cut out the middleman and put out several high-quality photos himself. 

In addition to teasing filmgoers with a shot of Phoenix in Joker makeup, Phillips has fought to present other members of the cast on his terms. In September 2018 the paparazzi managed to snap a photo of Zazie Beetz's character in full costume, so Phillips retaliated by releasing a professional quality photo through his Instagram feed. When a few fans commented that they were seeing too much of the movie before it was even released, Phillips responded and explained his reasoning behind releasing the image: "We have paparazzi all over our set, at every turn. And it bums me out that they constantly put out their bad shots. So I figure, may as well put out some good ones."

Despite being nominated for three Oscars, Joaquin Phoenix found himself thoroughly intimidated by the idea of playing the Joker — which is one of the main reasons he ultimately ended up signing on for the project. Even though Phoenix has a wide variety of experience, playing everything from a famous musician to paranoid emperor in past roles, he admitted to being terrified by the idea of portraying one of the most iconic villains of all time. "There is something very appealing about... working with (Todd Phillips) on this particular project," he said. "It feels unique, it is its own world in some ways, and maybe, mostly, it scares the f***ing s*** out of me or something. It might as well be the thing that scares you the most."

This isn't the first time Phoenix has contemplated playing a comic book character, as he was one of the main actors being considered for the role of Doctor Strange. He ended up passing on the role, saying he was worried that a blockbuster film run by a huge studio would restrict his freedom as an actor — which suggests this Joker will be a one-and-done deal for its star.

The first images of Phoenix in costume revealed the grubby makeup he would be wearing as the Joker, and offered some insight into some of the inspirations for this version of the Clown Prince of Crime. Although at first glance the makeup design definitely seems reminiscent of Heath Ledger's Joker, upon further examination it also seems to draw inspiration from several other sources. 

The color palette used certainly seems inspired by the makeup worn by John Wayne Gacy, a serial killer in the '70s who worked as a clown at parties and events. Gacy's clown makeup also incorporated the wide red mouth and high blue eye paint that appears on Phoenix. The bright blue makeup around the eyes also seems to be a nod to the look that the Joker had in some of the older Batman comics, such as "The Laughing Fish" and "Sign of the Joker."

In interviews, Joaquin Phoenix has suggested that Joker won't be the typical adrenaline-spiking, CGI-filled action film that Marvel and DC fans are accustomed to. Instead, the studio plans to deliver a low-budget character study. 

As it turns out, Phoenix had actually discussed a similar idea several years before he heard a Joker origin movie was in the works. "Three or four years ago, I called my agent and said 'Why don't they want to take one of these characters and just make a lower budget film about it, a movie but a character study, and why not take one of the villains?' I thought you can't do the Joker, because you know... it's just been done." Although Phoenix's agent tried to convince him to attend a general meeting with Warner Bros. after this talk, Phoenix dismissed the idea. He even forgot about the entire concept until he heard about Phillips' film and realized it was exactly the type of role he'd been imagining. 

Even actors in their early 20s aren't necessarily expected to do their own stunts, but Phoenix has been spotted participating in physically intensive set pieces for the film. Paparazzi snapped photos of him in action while filming some type of chase scene as he sprinted down the streets of New York in full clown makeup while being pursued by two of his co-stars, identified as Shea Whigham and Bill Camp, who were both dressed in police uniforms.

Photographers also managed to get a few action shots of the 44-year-old Phoenix throwing himself against the hood of a moving taxi in his Joker outfit, implying that he was struck by a car as he attempted to flee police custody. A short video also caught a glimpse of the actor throwing himself against the car so violently that he rolled up onto the roof. Although the Joker origin story movie seems to be more focused on plot and character development than action, it's still impressive that its star is getting involved in these potentially dangerous stunts himself. 

Apparently, an April Fool's joke went so far that it actually convinced thousands of fans and critics that Phillips' Joker film was set up as a prequel to Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight films. The whole affair started when Screen Rant shared a fake official plot synopsis which began with: "20 years before Batman saved the city in THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY, Gotham was a dangerous place. In the crime-ridden Narrows, one man tries to escape his unfortunate lot through a passion for theatrics and stand-up comedy." 

Although the story was later updated with a message revealing the synopsis had been an April Fool's joke, the fake story had already spread through Twitter and multiple news sources — many of which never edited or removed their articles incorrectly claiming that Phillips' Joker is a prequel to Nolan's beloved blockbusters. 

One of the frustrating things about making a movie is that by the time you're finally finished with it and ready to bring it to theaters, ideas that seemed relatively innocuous at the start of production can be regarded as passé — or downright dangerous. This was among the hard lessons learned during the weeks leading to the arrival of Joaquin Phoenix's Joker movie in theaters, as evidenced by the warning issued by the United States military prior to its debut.

In the warning, the Army advises active duty personnel to be on high alert if they attend Joker screenings, recommending that they look for escape routes in their theater and avoid actively engaging in any active shooter scenarios. Of particular concern is the Joker's overall storyline, in which a socially and sexually marginalized man channels his frustrations through violence — a narrative arc that could potentially prove appealing to more aggressive "incels," or involuntarily celibate men. The warning followed a letter sent to the studio by a group of people affected by the 2012 mass shooting in Aurora, Colorado, during a screening of The Dark Knight Rises. In that letter, the authors expressed alarm at the idea of a "sympathetic origin story" for such a reprehensible character, quoting a variation on the classic Spider-Man quote about great responsibility coming with great power.

For their part, Warner Bros. attempted to assuage concerns by issuing a public statement assuring audiences that Joker's storyline isn't meant to be interpreted in this way. "Make no mistake: neither the fictional character Joker, nor the film, is an endorsement of real-world violence of any kind," the studio stressed. "It is not the intention of the film, the filmmakers or the studio to hold this character up as a hero."