Paul Schrader calls ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ a really bad musical

Schrader’s ‘Taxi Driver’ which he wrote for Martin Scorsese reportedly served as an inspiration for the first part of ‘Joker’, based on the eponymous DC Comics villain

Hollywood writer-director Paul Schrader says he couldn't survive Joker: Folie a Deux for more than 20 minutes.

The Taxi Driver scriptwriter said the sequel, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga and directed by Todd Phillips, was a really bad musical.

The film, a sequel to the 2019 movie, has received negative reviews and stands to lose between USD 150 million to USD 200 million at the box office, according to Variety.

Schrader's Taxi Driver reportedly served as an inspiration for the first part of the movie, based on the eponymous DC Comics villain.

When Jeremy O Harris of the Interview magazine asked Schrader what he had seen recently, the filmmaker said, "I see who’s coming up. I go to the multiplex. I saw 'Joker: Folie à Deux'.

"I saw about 10 or 15 minutes of it. I left, bought something, came back, saw another 10 minutes. That was enough." Harris asked the filmmaker whether he had seen "Emilia Perez", Schrader said he had missed it at Cannes.

Schrader once again recalled his experience of "Joker 2" when Harris proclaimed that he loved musicals.