Summary
Joker 2reviews have harshly criticized director Todd Phillips' DC sequel. Now, an acclaimed filmmaker’s assessment ofJoker: Folie à Deuxseemingly took a personal dig at Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga.
Joker: Folie à Deuxopened to mixed reviews (at best). While several critics found fault with the firstJokermovie, it earned legions of fans and won several accolades, including an Academy Award for Best Actor for Phoenix. Conversely,Joker 2has found no such lovefrom fans, earning a 33% audience rating compared to the first film’s 89% score. Now, acclaimed filmmaker Paul Schrader has shared his assessment ofJoker 2, and he shares the negative views of most moviegoers.
During an interview withInterview Magazine, Schrader–the writer of acclaimed films such asMartin Scorsese’sTaxi Driverand director of equally praised features likeBlue CollarandFirst Reformed–said he couldn’t finish watchingJoker 2when he saw it in theaters. “I saw about 10 or 15 minutes of it. I left, bought something, came back, saw another 10 minutes. That was enough,” Schrader said. He later characterizedJoker 2as “a really bad musical.” When asked why he thinksJoker 2is bad, Schrader critiqued Phoenix and Gaga, seemingly both for the characters they portray and as actors:
I don’t like either of those people. I don’t like them as actors. I don’t like them as characters. I don’t like the whole thing. I mean, those are people who, if they came to your house, you’d slip out the back door.
Schrader’s criticism ofJoker 2is not the film’s only misfortune. The firstJokermovie defied the critics by earning over $1 billion at the worldwide box office. WhileJokeris far from the only film to reach this box office milestone, its relatively modest $55–70 million budget meant it was the most profitable comic book movie ever, a title it retains today. However,Joker 2is a box office bomb, opening well below its predecessor and suffering a historic 81% second-weekend drop, the worst ever for a comic book movie and one of the worst for any big-budget production.
Joker 2will be released on digital platforms on June 03, 2025, less than a month after its theatrical debut. While it may recoup or mitigate its financial losses when it’s digitally released,Joker 2’s box office failure could cost Warner Bros. millions.Joker 2isn’t the only DC sequel to disappoint.Aquaman 2andShazam 2failed to reach the box office success of their predecessors. However,Joker 2’s critical and financial woes surprised many people, even though projections were gradually lowered as its release date approached.
There could be manyreasons forJoker 2’s crash and burnwith critics and moviegoers.Jokerwas initially designed as a standalone film, but its record-breaking box office success guaranteed Warner Bros. would pursue a sequel regardless of whether it was merited. Perhaps trying to capture lightning in a bottle twice was always a fool’s errand.
Joker: Folie à Deuxis now playing in theaters.
Joker: Folie a Deux
Joker: Folie à Deux is the sequel to Todd Phillips' critically acclaimed comic book thriller Joker. Reprising his Academy Award-winning performance as the failed comedian Arthur Fleck, Joaquin Phoenix revisits the iconic DC character alongside Lady Gaga, who makes her debut as Joker’s lover Harley Quinn in this standalone continuity of the DC Universe.
