Things seem to be going crazy over at DC Films right now. I cover this stuff on a near-daily basis, and even I’m having trouble keeping the many films they have in development. In addition to a handful of Harley Quinn-focused movies, they also have a few Joker-focused films — one of which is a standalone set in the DCEU, one of which is a “vs.” film with Harley, and one of which is a standalone set outside of the DCEU. We’re here to talk about that latter film.

When that Joker film was announced, it was made clear that this would be a 1980s gritty crime movie in the vein of a Martin Scorsese film (who is acting as producer). On board to direct is The Hangover and War Dogs‘ Todd Phillips. This film would be a departure from the other films, and would usher in a new imprint, which THR speculates would be something along the lines of “DC Black” or “DC Dark.”

When this announcement was first made, I thought it was kind of brilliant. In creating a shared universe of films, you really do limit some of the potential of these characters and the vision of some directors. In allowing films to take place outside of the universe, you’re giving us opportunities to see endless takes on these characters — and this lets Warner Bros. continue to be a director-focused studio.

But what would the budget be?

I had concerns that they’d still throw in $150 million and make this like every other movie, but is a new report from THR is to be believed, that won’t be the case. According to them, they have the film budgeted at around $55 million, which is a fraction of most superhero films, and right in line with a standard adult crime thriller.

This is another brilliant move from them. This allows the film to be much riskier since it won’t need to rake in hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue just to break even. It also further allows the filmmakers to be creative with their story and the way they tell it. I may not be completely sold on the DCEU at large, but this new Joker film (which reportedly stars Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker) is really starting to intrigue me.

But am I alone? What do you think? Are you as excited as I am? Sound off down below!

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SOURCE: THR