Since its debut at the Venice Film Festival, Joker: Folie à Deux has been getting a lot of attention, but not always for good reasons. While the original movie got 69% on Rotten Tomatoes, the sequel managed a 61% just a few weeks ago, which was not great but still decent.
Now, after the movie’s wider release and as it gets ready for its October 4 US theatrical release, its score has dropped to an unfortunate 48% based on 88 reviews.
The movie’s low score is surprising, especially given its amazing cast. Big names like Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, and Steve Coogan have joined Joaquin Phoenix, who is playing his Oscar-winning role as Arthur Fleck again.
Director Todd Phillips is thrilled to work with Phoenix once more, and he shared his excitement in an interview with Collider’s Steve Weintraub.
“It’s a dream for a director. It’s what you want, and, quite frankly, a lot of actors do do that. Maybe not to the extent that Joaquin does, but you always want to try different things. You certainly wanna give them an environment and a freedom that makes them feel safe to do those things.
I think Joaquin, with me, really feels that. So for me and Jeff [Groth], who I edit with, we’re in heaven when we go through Joaquin’s stuff. Because there is no set way, and it’s like, “Oh, this is feeling like the scene before it. I wish there was another way to cut this.”
Well, there is, because we have these “Take Sixes” on each one that are entirely different and will give it a whole different meaning or energy or emotion or whatever the thing is. So what it’s like is, it’s an absolute dream really.”
Joker: Folie à Deux Struggles to Meet Expectations
Word spreads quickly in the film industry, and the news about Joker: Folie à Deux’s issues has reached all over the world. The movie mixes courtroom drama and musical elements, which has frustrated many critics. Some have called the movie a big disappointment.
However, it seems the sequel was always going to struggle because the first movie was so successful, both in terms of money and reviews. This difference in quality has left fans of the first movie unhappy.
In his review for Collider, Martin Tsai said:
“Phillips had one job, which was to recreate the jittery cringe of the original Joker to capitalize on the commercial and awards successes. A middling courtroom tale and half-baked musical is not the kind of victory lap anyone wants. Your best bet is to go rewatch The People’s Joker and pretend this never happened.”
As of now, Joker: Folie à Deux holds a 48% on Rotten Tomatoes. The movie will be available in theaters on October 4.
Few characters in television and entertainment have had the long-lasting impact that Superman has. The Man of Steel has been a constant presence in the superhero genre, inspiring many adaptations.
As we anticipate James Gunn’s Superman movie, which will debut next summer and kick off the new DC Universe, we also prepare to say goodbye to The CW’s recent portrayal of Superman in Superman & Lois. The show will conclude after its fourth and final season.
However, none of these adaptations match the enduring popularity of Smallville, which ended more than a decade ago. Now, Erica Durance, who starred in the original series, has shared what she hopes for in a potential return as Lois Lane in a future revival series.
Tom Welling and Michael Rosenbaum, who played Superman and Lex Luthor, have yet to get the official go-ahead for their animated Smallville revival series. In an interview with Screen Rant, Durance, who played Superman’s love interest, shared her ideas for the future of her character.
The actor said:
“I’d love to have show where she would have gone further in her career. Whether it was for her to be a mother, how she balanced all of that. I’d like to goes a little more into her past, her experiences with her dad, and how her upbringing shaped her a little bit more and just seeing her grow into another person, a grown-up version of herself.
But I’d love to keep her complicated and full of conflict and not always doing the right thing and not always saying the right thing, because there [are] more people like that out there, I think, in the world, than the ones that seem to be super slick.”
A Revival Series is Coming Soon
Smallville was created by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar and aired from 2001 to 2011. The show became a lasting tribute to Superman’s origins, offering a down-to-earth take on his story. It also paved the way for other superhero shows like Arrow and The Flash.
While David Corenswet and Nicholas Hoult represent the future versions of Superman and Lex Luthor in James Gunn and Peter Safran’s DC Universe, Smallville stars Welling and Rosenbaum are working on a potential revival of their series.
“Tom and I are working on a Smallville animated series that we’re trying to get made. It’s gonna take time. But the creators of Smallville are attached, they want to be a part of it.
Still from Smallville (Credit: Hulu)
And we, you know, when it’s the right time, we’ll pitch it. You know, we’re working on it and we have some loose animation that we’ve worked [on] with someone who was just awesome. It looks great. So if we can get that made, that’d be awesome,” Rosenbaum said.
Superman’s next big-screen appearance will be on July 11, 2025, when he kicks off the DCU in theaters. Fans can stream all episodes of the original Smallville on Hulu. Keep an eye out for more updates on the Smallville animated series.
