While the torrent of leaks from Todd Phillips’ Joker seems to have calmed down a little after that first wave of great pictures of Phoenix in full Crown Prince of Crime gear, the film continues its shoot in New York City.
To prove it, we now have a few new pics that appear to show a low-key moment for the character. The photos, seen in the gallery below, feature Phoenix in his pre-clown Arthur Fleck gear smoking a lonely cigarette outside a hospital, before pacing up and down in front of the exit door.
We’ve heard rumors that Fleck will spend part of the movie caring for his sick mother Penny (a role reportedly turned down by Frances McDormand). Given what we know about his future, it’s safe to say that things don’t look too bright for her, so there’s a chance this scene comes as she’s dying and Phoenix is nervously awaiting news from her doctors. Her death is probably one of the many factors that kick off his future as a supervillain, too, though it’s a nice humanizing moment for a character generally depicted as an almost supernatural force of chaos.
Despite the film now being a lot less mysterious after those set pics, it can’t be denied that this project is a very different beast from your average superhero movie. For one thing, there doesn’t appear to be any actual superheroes in it.
Given that Thomas Wayne is alive and well (and running for mayor), we can assume that Bruce Wayne is still a young boy, meaning that there won’t be an appearance from Batman (unless they want to get really screwy with the continuity). In fact, it seems that a “Trump-like” Thomas Wayne (or possibly “Wanye”) may well be the villain of the piece, perhaps concluding with the Clown Prince blowing him and his wife away in front of their terrified son.
Either way, hopefully we’ll see a trailer before too long, as I can’t wait to see how Joker turns out.
