Joker Almost Had Martin Scorsese As A Producer

One of the greatest working directors in Hollywood is none other than Martin Scorsese. Throughout his career, he has movies like Goodfellas, Taxi Driver, and the upcoming Netflix original The Irishman under his belt. And when it comes to movies based on comics, you wouldn't expect to see Scorsese's name attached, but he almost had a hand in working on Joker.

Originally, Scorsese was involved with Joker, according to The Hollywood Reporter. While one source claims he was eyeing to direct, a rep for the director says that wasn't the case, and he only considered producing the Todd Phillips movie. Scorsese was reportedly brought on by Warner Bros. because they needed a producer based out of New York.

However, Scorsese supposedly cut ties entirely with Joker to work on The Irishman, his upcoming crime drama starring Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci, which lands on Netflix on November 27. That will get many wondering how Scorsese's hand would have guided Joker, which made over $90 million its first three days in theaters.

Joker may be a bit polarizing with critics, but GameSpot's Mike Rougeau gave Joker 10/10 in his review, saying, "Joker succeeds, without equivocation, because it transforms the villain into the populist antihero we need him to be now. Joker wears its influences on its maroon sleeves, but it also carves its own gashes through the blood-soaked landscape of contemporary comic book movies, offering something that, despite teetering on the shoulders of 80 years of history, is wonderfully fresh, dangerously exciting, undeniably entertaining, and rock-solid in its artistry."

Director Todd Phillips has been very open about the movie, including how Joker is a "real movie," under the guise of a comic book movie. He also clarified earlier statements about a Joker sequel, which the director says won't happen and previous reports were misconstrued. Joker is in theaters now.