Joker 2 is making headlines, but not for the reasons Warner Bros. might have hoped. The highly anticipated sequel, Joker: Folie à Deux, which finally hit theaters on October 4th, is already facing a rocky reception that could spell serious trouble for its box office run. Following in the footsteps of its 2019 predecessor—which saw Joaquin Phoenix earn an Oscar for his chilling portrayal of Arthur Fleck—the film adds Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn to spice things up. But audiences and critics alike seem largely unimpressed by the results.
Early reviews, emerging from the movie’s Venice Film Festival premiere last month, were a mixed bag—and the trend has only dipped further. At the moment, the movie holds a dismal 33% rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and an even lower 31% audience score. It’s a stark contrast to the original Joker, which garnered critical acclaim and smashed box office records.
A Historic Low for Comic Book Films
The real blow came with the CinemaScore: Joker: Folie à Deux has landed a painful D rating from opening day audiences, setting a negative milestone for Hollywood comic book adaptations. To put it in perspective, even the derided Morbius and Madame Web scraped together C+ scores. Russell Crowe’s horror flop, The Exorcism, is the only other film of the post-pandemic era to receive such a dismal rating—and yet, it managed to score just as badly as Joker 2. It turns out audiences aren’t entirely convinced by this oddly musical take on Gotham’s infamous clown.
With such lackluster ratings, Joker 2 now holds the dubious distinction of being the lowest-rated major studio comic book film, falling behind even the legendarily cringe-worthy Batman & Robin from 1997. Notably, even the critically panned 2015 Fantastic Four reboot fared better, earning a C-.
Box Office Struggles
As expected, the poor reception is translating to box office woes. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the movie’s opening weekend is on track to earn under $50 million—a far cry from the $96.2 million debut of the original Joker, which went on to rake in over a billion dollars globally. Analysts were initially hopeful that the sequel might pull between $50 million and $60 million, but even that estimate was revised down as word spread about its less-than-stellar CinemaScore.
Critical Response
Critics haven’t been too kind either. The New York Times described the sequel as a “half-baked, half-hearted musical,” while Audrey Fox of Looper was even harsher, calling it a “chaotic, profoundly stupid mess.” Though not every review was completely negative—The Independent offered some praise, with Geoffrey Macnab noting Joaquin Phoenix’s performance as “powerful and stirring”—the overall sentiment seems to hover just above the line of disaster. Macnab highlighted how the brutal ending defies typical comic book conventions, providing psychological depth, but that’s one of the few glimmers of praise the movie has received.
A Struggle to Recapture the Magic
With audiences seemingly rejecting this unhinged follow-up, Joker: Folie à Deux looks to be struggling to find the same magic that captivated viewers the first time around. While the original movie’s dark and unsettling examination of Arthur Fleck’s descent into chaos resonated in 2019, the sequel’s choice to bring in musical elements and shift the narrative seems to have alienated a significant portion of its fanbase. Joker: Folie à Deux is currently playing in theaters—if you’re feeling curious, you can judge for yourself whether the movie hits or misses the mark.
