Joker 2 Ending Is ‘Unsettling,’ Says Director Todd Phillips

With Joker 2 having premiered at the Venice Film Festival, director Todd Phillips commented on how people will react to Folie à Deux’s ending. Similar to how the first film drew strong reactions with its defining moment in the third act, Phillips believes that Joker 2 will also leave people with a lot to process.

Joker 2 ending is “unsettling” and director Todd Phillips knows it

As Joker: Folie à Deux closes in on its theatrical release, early fan screenings continue to draw reactions from people. At one such pre-screening event, Phillips stated he was already aware of how Joker 2’s ending would make people react.

“For the people that have seen this movie in general… at the end, they sit, and they don’t move for about three to five minutes. Then they text me, the ones that know me, or email me and go, ‘I need a minute to process the movie,” said Phillips (via /Film).

“I think it’s unsettling, clarifies a lot of things that you might have had questions about in the first movie.”

He concluded hoping that all fan queries would get answered in this one.

Joker: Folie à Deux’s reviews have already divided the critics. Now, whether the general audience has a positive or negative reception of the film remains to be seen. But Phillips’ comments suggest that its ending will definitely draw out strong reactions from the viewers, possibly leaving them divided as well.

Joker 2 hits theaters on October 4, 2024. It stars Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck and Lady Gaga as a version of Harley Quinn. Zazie Beetz returns as Sophie Dumond alongside Leigh Gill’s Gary and Sharon Washington, who plays Arthur’s social worker.