Lakeith Stanfield knows that the Todd Phillips-directed Joker might dominate the Oscars this weekend. He’s also aware of Joaquin Phoenix’s game-changing performance as Arthur Fleck, and well, that’s alright with Lakeith. He’s not intimidated, and in fact, he’s still pushing hard to play the Joker in a future movie. For real! He even told Jimmy Kimmel about it and everything. Lakeith wants to do this thing, and that’s why he was bold enough to show up to the Los Angeles premiere of Joker in full-on makeup (and a foil grill) as the Clown Prince of Crime.
Although Lakeith is officially promoting The Photograph (with Issa Rae) lately, he’s still got Joker on the brain. The Sorry to Bother You, Selma, Straight Outta Compton, and Knives Out actor has been doing some dreamcasting as well, or rather, dreamdirecting. As he told Collider this week, this would ideally be a very collaborative project between the lead actor, the screenwriters, and the directors. On that last note, he’d love to reteam with his Uncut Gems helming duo, Josh and Benny Safdie:
“What I’d bring to it would have a lot to do with who I collaborate with, and how the story’s written and what world we exist in, and then I’ll go do my lil magic … Wouldn’t it be crazy if me and the Safdies did something like that?”
Sure, why not? A Joker movie every few years would probably sell enough tickets to justify the ridiculousness of such a tradition. And really, if The Hangover director can pull off Arthur Fleck, there’s no reason to believe that the Safdie brothers, who excel at executing tension-filled storylines, couldn’t make an even better movie. They’d have the tone down, no problem, and with Stanfield already claiming to make his own mini-movies as the Joker at home, they’ve got their appropriately obsessed leading man already onboard as well. Warner Bros., are you listening? Because Lakeith’s gonna keep talking until he achieves this goal.
(Via Collider)
