Francis Ford Coppola Says JOKER 2 Director Todd Phillips Has “Always Been One Step Ahead Of The Audience”

Legendary director Francis Ford Coppola has shared high praise for Joker: Folie à Deux and director Todd Phillips.

The divisive DC Comics sequel opened well behind expectations after – hard as it may be to believe – becoming the first comic book movie in history to receive a D CinemaScore. Despite backlash from a lot of fans, the movie does have its share of defenders, and can now count Coppola among them.

“Ever since the wonderful The Hangover, he’s always been one step ahead of the audience, never doing what they expect. Congratulations to Joker: Folie à Deux,” Coppola wrote on Instagram.

Folie à Deux definitely didn’t give audiences what they were expecting… for better or worse. Instead of following the Joker after the events of the first film, the story focuses on Arthur Fleck taking responsibility for the crimes he committed and rejecting his Joker persona. In Arkham, Fleck meets Lee Quinzel (Lady Gaga), and the pair engage in several fantastical musical numbers while Arthur goes in trial for murder.

It was always going to be a risky direction to take this sequel, but the execution seems to have come in for more criticism than the general idea.

Coppola’s latest film, Megalopolis, is also struggling at the box office, and earned an only slightly better D+ CinemaScore. The movie has had an even worse time at the box office, debuting to $4 million against a production budget of $120 million before marketing. Coppola raised the funds himself, and also put in quite a bit of his own money prior to Lionsgate coming on board.

From acclaimed writer/director/producer Todd Phillips comes Joker: Folie À Deux, the much-anticipated follow-up to 2019’s Academy Award-winning Joker, which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and remains the (second) highest-grossing R-rated film of all time.

The new film stars Joaquin Phoenix once again in his Oscar-winning dual role as Arthur Fleck/Joker, opposite Oscar winner Lady Gaga (A Star Is Born). The film also stars Oscar nominees Brendan Gleeson (The Banshees of Inisherin) and Catherine Keener (Get Out, Capote), alongside Zazie Beetz, reprising her role from Joker.

The movie is rated R for “some strong violence, language throughout, some sexuality, and brief full nudity.”

Do you plan on seeing the Joker sequel in theaters, or have the reviews put you off? Let us know in the comments section down below.