Warner Brothers want DiCaprio as their new Joker.
We reported last week that The Hangover director Todd Phillips would be helming a new Joker movie that is allegedly not part of the same continuity as current DC Extended Universe, or DCEU as it’s commonly known. Instead the new film is to be part of the studio’s plans to commit to a separate series of films, with different actors playing the roles of respective DC comic book characters. This new Joker film is said to feature a younger version of the character and will be set in the 1980s, featuring the character’s origin and is said to be more grounded in reality than DC’s current batch of films.
It was also announced that Warner Bros were deeply committed to getting Martin Scorsese on board as producer. Whilst the legendary director has yet to sign on officially to the project, some interesting news comes to light that may prove why he is being sought out. The Hollywood Reporter has reported that they have sources stating that the studio are hoping to snag a major Hollywood star for the lead role and their top choice is none other than Leonardo DiCaprio.
The actor has a great working relationship with Scorsese, having worked with him on Gangs of New York, The Departed, where he played opposite a former version of the Joker in Jack Nicholson. He most recently starred in Scorsese’s Oscar nominated The Wolf of Wall Street in 2013. The Source states that whilst a formal offer has yet to be made to DiCaprio that he is the Studio’s top choice for the role and that Warner Bros are looking for this feature to be a return to their more critically regarded Dark Knight Trilogy.
DiCaprio as the Joker may please many but the current incarnation of the character is played by Jared Leto who is said to be more than slightly displeased about this stand alone movie with the actor reportedly making his stance known to his CAA agents. However, it also appears that the story of his version of the Joker is far from over with at Warner Bros as The Hollywood Reporter is also stating that the studio also want him back on the streets of Gotham and are planning an upcoming Joker and Harley Quinn movie, with Margo Robbie returning as his “Puddin'”.
The film is planned to be released after the proposed Suicide Squad sequel and it has been reported that Glenn Ficarra and John Requa, the team behind the recent Emmy Award nominated NBC drama This is Us, have been approached to write and direct the project, having previously worked with Robbie on the Will Smith film Focus with the source describing the film as being akin to “When Harry Met Sally on Benzedrine.”