When you’re the type of actor that Joaquin Phoenix is, you can get away with acting a bit elusive in an interview. The enigmatic actor has made a name for himself as someone who doesn’t normally give straight answers to probing questions. So, when Yahoo interviewed him and asked about the long-rumored ‘Joker’ film by director Todd Phillips, it shouldn’t be a surprise that the actor played it very close to the vest.
When asked if he’d be interested in a film about the Joker, the actor gave a short response, “Who?” They then clarified and asked again. Playing coy, Phoenix again gave the non-answer, “I don’t know what people do nowadays.”
While there may be no truth to the rumor that Phoenix has been circling the untitled ‘Joker’ film by Phillips and producer Martin Scorsese, it’s hard to believe that Phoenix is this out of the loop. The film is rumored to be an origin story for the famous Batman villain, which takes place in 1980s Gotham City, and is supposed to be a more adult version of the character that we haven’t really seen on screen before.
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Phoenix was then just asked flat-out if he’d be interested in superhero projects, at all. Considering he has been in talks with Marvel Studios before, the rumors of Phoenix being attached to superhero films is nothing new. When asked, Phoenix finally gave more than simple, non-answers.
“It’s just the character and the filmmaker, right? Westerns were just comics, and then they began as shitty Old West movies until somebody came along and said, ‘Wait a minute, there’s a great character here.’ So I’m not opposed to them, or that genre. I mean, typically I don’t like horror stuff, but there’s obviously some brilliant horror movies. So I’m not opposed to a movie just because of the genre — it just depends on the character,” Phoenix said.
However, it was the last question of the interview that sheds the most light on the ‘Joker’ reports. Phoenix was asked if there was any truth to the rumor about the ‘Joker’ film. “Oh, no idea. [Smiling.] No idea. I look at so many different things, so I don’t know what is happening,” concludes Phoenix.
While it seems like Phoenix is playing coy, the ‘Joker’ film still feels like it’s a long way off, anyway. So, while the actor might “look” at the ‘Joker’ film, in his mind nothing is set in stone yet.
‘…a more adult version of the character that we haven’t really seen on screen before.’. Umm, so Ledger’s Oscar winning performance was Saturday morning cartoon stuff?