Joaquin Phoenix finds his smile in first Joker trailer

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Yesterday Warner Bros. debuted the first trailer for the upcoming standalone JOKER movie starring Joaquin Phoenix as the iconic madman, and word is the footage was sensational and hints at a dark, creepy character study that calls to mind movies like Scorsese's TAXI DRIVER. That's beyond high praise, and now you can see what all the fuss was about as the very first trailer has arrived online hours early.  The short answer is, yes, this trailer is everything you've heard it is and more.

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This is the kind of trailer that turns doubters into believers. The movie looks grim, unsettling, violent, and even a tad bit ethereal as it digs into the slowly breaking mind of a man going insane. Phoenix looks like he's giving a Joker performance that's on par with Heath Ledger's, taking the character from his tragic roots and forming him into the criminal he will become. The movie feels very firm in the roots of the grounded style Nolan embraced to make his Dark Knight Trilogy one for the ages, and that's something that could propel this to being a massive hit. 

We also get glimpses at Brian Tyree Henry, Zazie Beetz, Robert De Niro and Brett Cullen as Thomas Wayne, with plenty of references to Gotham City and Arkham Asylum, which certainly drives the point home this will not be your typical comic book movie. 

JOKER is in theaters October 4.