Well, that was fast.
Less than 48 hours have passed since Deadline broke news that Alec Baldwin had climbed aboard Joker as the illustrious Thomas Wayne and already, the actor has been forced to pull out of the nascent DC project entirely due to issues with scheduling.
Frances Conroy, Robert De Niro, Marc Maron and Deadpool 2 star Zazie Beetz have already been cast in the standalone crime saga from Todd Phillips and Joaquin Phoenix that’s due to begin filming in September. But when those cameras start to roll, Alec Baldwin won’t be present, as he’s now vacated the role of Thomas Wayne, Batman’s father, whose “cheesy and tanned” demeanor is said to be akin to a 1980s Donald Trump.
Baldwin confirmed as much to USA Today (h/t Bloody Disgusting), stating:
I’m no longer doing that movie. I’m sure there are 25 guys who can play that part.
What’s interesting about this sudden change of heart is that it may well boil down to misinformed reporting, as Baldwin took to Twitter immediately after Deadline’s scoop to share an admittedly vague message, one which called his involvement into question. There were also concerns that Alec Baldwin playing a 1980s-esque Donald Trump would be seen as nothing more than an ego stroke, as the actor has already netted an Emmy nomination for his caricature of the POTUS on Saturday Night Live.
Joker, on the other hand, will seemingly be angled as more of a mid-budget crime thriller than a full-blown blockbuster – think in the region of $55M – which is a far cry from the $200M+ splurges for the likes of Justice League and Suicide Squad. Suffice it to say, this is a film cut from a totally different cloth than recent DC movies, so we’re intrigued to watch things take shape.