Joker Screenplay

Todd Phillips directed Joker and co-wrote the screenplay with Scott Silver, drawing inspiration from Martin Scorsese's Taxi Driver (1976) and The King of Comedy (1982). Joaquin Phoenix plays Arthur Fleck, a mentally ill failed comedian who descends into madness and becomes the Joker, losing significant weight for the role. Phillips was previously known for comedy films like The Hangover trilogy.

Joker won the Golden Lion, the top prize, at the 76th Venice International Film Festival in 2019, making it one of the few comic book adaptations to win a major festival award. At the Academy Awards, Joaquin Phoenix won Best Actor, and the film received 11 nominations total, including Best Picture and Best Director for Todd Phillips. The film also won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Drama.

Joker became the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time at the worldwide box office, earning over $1 billion against a reported budget of approximately $55–70 million. This made it significantly more profitable than most blockbuster superhero films, which typically cost far more to produce. The film's financial success demonstrated that dark, character-driven comic book films could achieve massive commercial appeal.

The 2019 Joker is a standalone film unconnected to the DC Extended Universe or the Joker portrayed by Jared Leto in Suicide Squad (2016). A sequel, Joker: Folie à Deux, was released in 2024 with Todd Phillips returning as director and Joaquin Phoenix reprising his role, joined by Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn. The sequel took a musical approach that divided critics and audiences.