Quentin Tarantino is Joker 2’s biggest fan: ‘One of the best performances I’ve ever seen’

Quentin Tarantino has never been afraid to express his opinion. Tarantino’s latest statement is about Joker: Folie à Deux, the much-maligned sequel. Not only did Tarantino love the movie but he cited Joaquin’s Phoenix acting in Joker 2 as “one of the best performances” he’s ever seen in his life.

“I really, really liked it, really. A lot. Like, tremendously, and I went to see it expecting to be impressed by the filmmaking,” Tarantino said in an interview on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast. “But I thought it was going to be an arms-length, intellectual exercise that ultimately I wouldn’t think worked like a movie, but that I would appreciate it for what it is. And I’m just nihilistic enough to kind of enjoy a movie that doesn’t quite work as a movie or that’s like a big, giant mess to some degree. And I didn’t find it an intellectual exercise. I really got caught up into it. I really liked the musical sequences.”

Tarantino might be one of the lone voices expressing support for Joker 2. The sequel to 2019’s Joker will likely be the biggest box office flop of the year. With a $201 million gross against a $190 million budget, Joker: Folie à Deux will reportedly lose between $150 million and $200 million for Warner Bros. Joker 2 has a D on CinemaScore. For comparison, Madame Web has a C+.

While Joker drew comparisons to Taxi Driver, Tarantino compared Joker: Folie à Deux to Natural Born Killers. Tarantino, who wrote the script for Natural Born Killers, loved that Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck and Lady Gaga’s Lee Quinzel resembled Woody Harrelson’s Mickey Knox and Juliette Lewis’ Mallory Wilson Knox.  

Tarantino also praised Joker 2 director Todd Phillips, saying he embodied Arthur Fleck’s spirit behind the camera.

“Todd Phillips is the Joker. The Joker directed the movie,” Tarantino added. “The entire concept, even him spending the studio’s money — he’s spending it like the Joker would spend it, all right? And then his big surprise gift — haha! — the jack-in-the-box, when he offers you his hand for a handshake and you get a buzzer with 10,000 volts shooting you — is the comic book geeks. He’s saying f— you to all of them. He’s saying f— you to the movie audience. He’s saying f— you to Hollywood. He’s saying f— you to anybody who owns any stock at DC and Warner Brothers […] And Todd Phillips is the Joker. Un film de Joker, all right, is what it is. He is the Joker.”

Joker: Folie à Deux is in theaters and available on digital services for purchase.