Robert Pattinson Hasn’t Seen Joker, Confirms Joaquin Phoenix Won’t Appear in The Batman

Despite all of the conversations that have surrounded the future of Joaquin Phoenix as Joker, it seems like people are still wondering whether or not his character will appear in another movie. Even Joker director Todd Phillips said his movie was a one-and-done affair, and that he had no plans for a sequel nor did he anticipate his version of the character would appear in other films. But that still hasn’t stopped people from asking of Phoenix’s Joker will appear opposite of Robert Pattinson in The Batman.

Now the Batman actor himself has spoken with Yahoo! about the rumors of Phoenix’s involvement, and he confirms that there are no plans to include his version of the Joker in the film. “It’s kind of a different world,” he said.

The actor went on to admit that he has not yet seen Joker, though he’s eager to watch the movie. “I might watch it tonight! Joaquin is the best — he’s awesome in everything,” Pattinson added.

There were rumors about Phoenix basically taking over the role from Jared Leto in the entire DC movie franchise, but Phillips has made it clear that there’s no plans for a sequel and that his movie is a stand alone film. And while other outlets reported that there could be plans for Joker to spawn a sequel, the director has since clarified his comments.

“The quote was, ‘I will do anything Joaquin wants to do,’” Phillips said to IGN. “And I would. But the movie’s not set up to [have] a sequel. We always pitched it as one movie, and that’s it.”

He made it clear during an interview with Jake Hamilton that they did discuss ideas, but that there are no immediate plans for a followup project.

“Well, I don’t think we’re gonna make a second one. That’s just not in our plans,” Phillips explained. “But for fun, have me and Joaquin bounced around ideas? We were doing it when we were shooting, because that’s what you do sometimes.”

The Batman itself will be a noir-focused detective story, and director Matt Reeves is hoping it will be a definitive tale for the Caped Crusader.

“It’s very much a point of view-driven, noir Batman tale,” Reeves told the Hollywood Reporter. “It’s told very squarely on his shoulders, and I hope it’s going to be a story that will be thrilling but also emotional. It’s more Batman in his detective mode than we’ve seen in the films. The comics have a history of that. He’s supposed to be the world’s greatest detective, and that’s not necessarily been a part of what the movies have been. I’d love this to be one where when we go on that journey of tracking down the criminals and trying to solve a crime, it’s going to allow his character to have an arc so that he can go through a transformation.”

Joker is currently playing in theaters. The Batman is currently set to premiere on June 25, 2021.