Joaquin Phoenix has kept fans guessing regarding if he is interested in appearing in a Joker origins movie that is unconnected to the DC Extended Universe. However, while he recently distanced himself from this Elseworlds-like story, he has now admitted that the door is still open for him to become the Clown Prince of Crime, and that it all depends on the circumstances surrounding the film and its narrative.
“I see it as any other movie,” he said in an interview with Fandango. “I wouldn’t say… 'I won’t do Westerns.' It depends on what it is. I don’t really care about the genre, I care about the character and the filmmaker. If you have the ability to transcend the genre, then that’s what you want to do. So I wouldn’t say, hands down, no -- I wouldn’t do that kind of movie."
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For some time, Warner Bros. has been flirting with the project, especially in the wake of Jared Leto's Joker not being well-received in David Ayer's Suicide Squad. Apart from this film, the studio was reportedly looking at other stories separate from the DCEU to contend with Marvel Studios and its cinematic universe.
"There are things where I’ve flirted with the possibility where there was the potential for this to be… something that’s actually interesting to me," Phoenix said. "But then for whatever reason they never got to that place where everyone else feels the same way. And that’s key. Everyone has to want to explore the same thing or else it just doesn’t f--king work. I’m not opposed to it. I don’t make decisions on budget or things like that -- it’s really the filmmaker and the character.”
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Many fans are hoping that a new take could be as cerebral as Heath Ledger's portrayal in The Dark Knight, rehabilitating the image Leto left in mind, with some even hoping for an R-rated version. Until Phoenix officially signs on though, all of this will simply remain speculation.
(via The Wrap)