‘Joker’ Director Reveals New Clown Costume From Set

Fans have gotten quite a few looks at Joaquin Phoenix in the upcoming Joker origin movie and now director Todd Phillips is sharing a new image that shows the iconic Batman villain in a completely different light.

Phillips took to Instagram on Monday to share a photo from the film’s set that featured Phoenix in clown getup that looks far more traditional than traditionally Joker-esque. You can check it out below.

In the photo, which Phillips simply captioned “work”, Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck is seen looking like a clown you might expect at a children’s birthday party. However, even in this non-threatening traditional attire there are hints of the DC Comics foe fans know very well. Phoenix’s character is wearing a green clown wig and if you look carefully, the details of the makeup are just clean, defined versions of the messier, nightmarish look we’ve seen in other photos from the film. And, if there were any doubt that this is, in fact, Phoenix in the costume, other photos have surfaced on social media offering a more direct look.

Speaking of images appearing on social media, it’s paparazzi photos of the set that have prompted Phillips to give fans these glimpses of the upcoming film. This weekend, Phillips shared the first official look of Zazie Beetz’s role in the film and, in response to a comment that too much has already been shared of the film. Phillips explained that it is the paparazzi’s “bad” shots that have prompted him to share “good ones”.

“Here’s the issue. We have paparazzi all over our set, at every turn,” Phillips wrote. “And it bums me out that they constantly put out their bad shots. So I figure, may has well put out some good ones.”

This new look at the film is certainly an interesting one, though it opens the door for speculation more than it does give anything away. Joker will see Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck descend into madness in ’80s era Gotham after he is shunned from society for his failing stand-up comedy career. As we have seen images and video of the character in a more classic Joker look, one has to wonder if this regular clown appearance comes after the character’s stand up failure or somewhere else in the story entirely. In either scenario, it is just another way the film will be going all in when it comes to the film’s aesthetic and plot.

“I wouldn’t quite classify this as like any genre,” Phoenix said in a recent interview. “I wouldn’t say it’s a superhero movie, or a studio movie or a … It feels unique, and I think more than anything, and probably the most important thing, is Todd seems very passionate about it and very giving, and so that’s exciting. I think, underneath the excitement of these films, and the size of them, there are these incredible characters that are dealing with real life struggles. And sometimes that is uncovered and exposed, and sometimes it isn’t, and so I always felt, like, there were characters in comics that were really interesting and deserve the opportunity to be kind of studied. And so I think that’s what Todd sees appealing about this idea.”

What do you think about this latest look at the Joker? Let us know in the comments below.

Joker is expected to debut in theaters on October 4, 2019. Upcoming DC Extended Universe films include Aquaman on December 21st, Shazam! on April 5, 2019, and Wonder Woman 1984 on November 1, 2019.