Todd Phillips Hopes Someone Will Make a Batman Film Set in His ‘Joker’ Universe

An open call to filmmakers?

Though he doesn’t appear to be signing on for the undertaking, Joker director, Todd Phillips, is ready to see a Batman born of his Gotham City.

READ: The Rumored Alternate Ending of Joker Could Have Changed DC Comics Forever

In a brief chat with Variety, the director was quick to shoot down any notion that he’d be the one to bring it the screen. But he went on to note, “What was interesting to me about the inclusion of Batman in our movie was ‘What kind of Batman does that Gotham make?'” Prior to the success of the film, Phillips was explicitly against any expansion of his vision for Joker. However, the director reportedly met with Warner Bros in late 2019 to discuss possible sequel ideas, a fairly logical proposition from the studio given Joker‘s north-of-a-billion-dollar haul at the box office (the first R-rated film in history to do so.)

READ: Joker Screenplay Surfaces, Deleted Scenes Clarify Sophie’s Fate

So while it doesn’t appear that there will be any interaction or crossover potential with Robert Pattinson’s upcoming The Batman, there’s still a chance Joaquin Phoenix’s Clown Prince squares up with some type of caped crusader on in the years ahead. Looking at you, aspiring dark comic book movie auteur.