The release of the first trailer for “Joker” introduced Joaquin Phoenix as Batman’s most iconic adversary, and also offered a brief glimpse of Robert De Niro as talk show host Murray Franklin — while the recent release of the film’s poster invited comparisons to Phoenix’s Joker and De Niro’s deluded wannabe comedian Rupert Pupkin in “The King of Comedy”.
In an interview with IndieWire, De Niro confirms there is indeed a connection between his “Joker” and “King of Comedy” roles — albeit not a “direct” one.
“There’s a connection, obviously, with the whole thing,” said the 75-year-old star. “But it’s not as a direct connection as the character I’m playing being Rupert many years later as a host.”
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While his new character may not be Rupert Pupkin, would he have been up for reprising the character? “If they would’ve proposed that to me, I would’ve said, ‘That’s interesting, maybe we’ll try to do that,’” De Niro admitted.
“But by making this type of film,” he added cryptically, “it is connected in a way, as you’ll see.”
“The Joker” is set to hit theatres in October.
