The much-hyped sequel “Joker: Folie à Deux” is projected to lose anywhere from $150 million to $200 million after a poor showing at the box office and lackluster reviews from critics and audiences.
The sequel to “Joker” (2019) was expected to perform much better, especially considering that the original raked in just over $1 billion. But the Joaquin Phoenix-led film, which also stars Lady Gaga, only earned $51.5 million domestically and $165 million globally after two weeks of release, per Variety.
Comparatively, the original “Joker” made $96.2 million domestically and $248.4 million globally in its first three days. It also won two Oscars, including a Best Actor award for Phoenix.
“Folie à Deux” cost $200 million to produce and about $100 million to market and distribute, the outlet noted. That makes its break-even amount around $450 million, which it likely will never reach. Anonymous “insiders” cited by Variety project the film will lose hundreds of millions of dollars.
Warner Bros. disagrees with these predictions, however.
“Any estimates suggested by anonymous ‘insiders’ or ‘rival executives’ are grossly wrong and continues a trend where rumor is reported as fact,” a Warner Bros. spokesperson said in a statement. “The film continues to play in theatrical release, included with this week’s opening in China, and will continue to earn revenue throughout its home viewing and ancillary run.”
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The studio is also hoping to recoup some of the money when “Joker 2” is released on streaming at the end of the month.
“Folie à Deux” is very different from the first “Joker” film, which was a dark, gritty antihero tale. The sequel is a musical with a love story intertwined, which didn’t resonate with audiences. The movie has a 33% rating from critics and a 32% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes.
“The falloff in quality from ‘Joker,’ a genuinely searing innovation in comic-book movies, to this one is so steep that it’s comparable to the dropoff between ‘The Hangover’ and ‘The Hangover Part II,’” the Wall Street Journal critic wrote.
The reviewer from The Atlantic wrote, “The musical performances are underpowered, lacking much movement, personality, or surprise. In fact, the film’s problems are so glaring that one can’t help but wonder about what happened behind the scenes.”
Fans were not impressed either, with many complaining about the film being a musical and having such a different feel compared to the original. “I did not want to go see a musical. I went to go see a joker movie,” one moviegoer wrote, echoing the sentiments of so many others.
