Todd Phillips’ Joker, arguably the most-anticipated film of the year, is his original vision of the infamous DC villain. It’s an origin story that’s infused with, yet outside, the character’s more traditional narrative. The movie, toplined by Joaquin Phoenix, is the director, co-writer and producer’s exploration of Arthur Fleck — a man struggling to find his way in Gotham’s fractured society. Longing for any light to shine on him, he tries his hand as a stand-up comic, but finds the joke always seems to be on him. Caught in a cyclical existence between apathy and cruelty and, ultimately, betrayal, Arthur makes one bad decision after another that brings about a chain reaction of escalating events in this gritty, allegorical character study. 

Interestingly, though he’d resisted any sort of genre-inspired projects in the past, Joaquin was intrigued when he read the script of Joker. “I thought it was bold and complex and like nothing I’d ever read before. Todd has a unique way of looking at things, which is perfect for this movie,” says the actor. About working with Todd, he stated, “When I work with a director, I want somebody who has a singular take on the material, and nobody could have made this movie but Todd.”