Warner Bros. to give Jared Leto his own standalone Joker movie

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

David Ayer's SUICIDE SQUAD has proven to be quite the spin-off machine, and Variety has reported that we can add yet another to the ranks as Warner Bros. is looking to give Jared Leto his very own Joker film. The actor played the part of the Clown Prince of Crime in SUICIDE SQUAD, but much of the role ended up on the cutting room floor and the Joker was only featured in a handful of scenes.

Plot details are naturally scarce at this point, but Variety claims that Warner Bros. is looking to expand on the SUICIDE SQUAD world with more spin-offs, a great many of which seem to revolve around Harley Quinn (Margot Robbie) or the Joker. In addition to starring in the project, Jared Leto will also serve as executive producer and the search is currently underway for a writer to tackle the script. Much of Jared Leto's performance felt overshadowed by the various "method-acting" shenanigans which leaked out before the the release of SUICIDE SQUAD (many of which Leto claimed never happened), so it would be gratifying to see what Leto can do with the role when he's actually given something to do.

Of course, there are a number of you who would prefer that Jared Leto's Joker be scrapped from future DC movies, in which case the other Joker movie will likely be the one to root for. Todd Phillips (THE HANGOVER) is slated to direct a Joker origin story, which is rumoured to find the Joker as a failed 1980s comedian who snaps after bombing with audiences, much like Alan Moore and Brian Bolland's "The Killing Joke," which jives with the initial description of the project as a "gritty and grounded hard-boiled crime film set in early-80's Gotham City" which is meant to feel more like TAXI DRIVER or RAGING BULL than a regular DCEU film. It's been said that Joaquin Phoenix will play the Joker in that film, but the actor has been playing it rather coy. The Todd Phillips film will fall under a new banner which would separate it from the main DC universe and allow for the studio to make all kinds of DC movies of different budgets and time periods unconnected to the main line of DC movies.

What say you? Does a standalone Joker film starring Jared Leto tickle your funny bone?