The expected sequel to “Joker””, starring again by Joaquin Phoenix, had a discouraging debut at the box office, despite the overwhelming success of its first installment, which won the Golden Lion in Venice and an Oscar award for Phoenix. “Joker: Folie à Deux” failed to meet expectations at the cinema.
With a collection of approximately 40 million dollars (USD) in its first weekendthe film is below expectations, where A profit of between 50 and 60 million (USD) was projected.and obtained a lower figure than the 96 million that its predecessor achieved (2019) in the United States in the same period.
To reach the equilibrium point, “Folie à Deux” would need to generate at least $450 million worldwideaccording to Variety, taking into account that The film had a budget of 190 million (USD).
Despite “It is not a death sentence for a film with a budget of 190 million“, according to the analysis of journalist Jeremy Fuster, Box Office reporter, ““A result like that would have required a strong stir from the audience for it to be a success in theaters despite such a high production cost,” he wrote in the American media TheWrap specialized in film reviews. The journalist called “Joker: Folie á Deux” as “a film for nobody.”
And the film received a low critical rating with 33% on Rotten Tomatoes, a severe drop compared to the first Joker which had a much stronger reception with a score of 68% from critics and 89% from the public on the renowned American platform that compiles film reviews.
In 2019, Joker had positioned itself as one of the highest-grossing R-rated films in history, with a Global collection of more than 1,070 million dollars and a budget of 55-70 million.
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the movie directed by Todd Phillips had brought the story of Arthur Fleck, Gotham’s infamous villain, to the big screen, captivating critics for its dark and realistic narrative. In terms of profitability, It was extremely lucrative.
However, Joker: Folie à Deux, described as a “musical drama thriller” according to Box Office Mojo, a platform dedicated to tracking the box office receipts of movies, It moves away from the style that characterized the first installment.
So according to TheWrap’s analysis, “some critics such as William Bibbiani of TheWrap, David Ehrlich of Indiewire and David Fear of Rolling Stone have proposed an interpretation of the film in which Phillips (the director) also questions whether fans of his 2019 hit feel the same way about Arthur by denying them the vengeful violence that permeated the first film.”
