Alec Baldwin exited the upcoming Joker solo movie earlier today.
Speaking with USA Today, Baldwin said, “I’m no longer doing that movie.” He explained he exited the film because of “scheduling” issues.
Baldwin also added, “I’m sure there are 25 guys who can play that part.”
Alec Baldwin was expected to play Thomas Wayne, the father of Bruce Wayne. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film would see the character “as a cheesy and tanned businessman who is more in the mold of a 1980s Donald Trump.”
Baldwin has been impersonating Donald Trump over the past two years on Saturday Night Live. His impersonations even earned him two Emmy nominations.
The Joker film will star Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker. He will be joined by Deadpool 2’s Zazie Beetz, Robert De Niro, and Glow actor Marc Maron. The film is being compared to 80s crime thrillers [easyazon_link identifier=”B000I9U7C4″ locale=”US” tag=”boundingintocomics-20″]Taxi Driver[/easyazon_link] and [easyazon_link identifier=”B00CJVH786″ locale=”US” tag=”boundingintocomics-20″]The King of Comedy[/easyazon_link].
Phoenix described the film as “unique, it is its own world in some ways, and maybe, mostly, it scares the f***ing s**t out of me or something. It might as well be the thing that scares you the most.”
He would indicate this film will be unlike typical superhero movies:
“I wouldn’t quite classify this as like any genre. I wouldn’t say it’s a superhero movie, or a studio movie or a … It feels unique, and I think more then anything, and probably the most important thing, is Todd seems very passionate about it and very giving, and so that’s exciting. I think, underneath the excitement of these films, and the size of them, there are these incredible characters that are dealing with real life struggles. And sometimes that is uncovered and exposed, and sometimes it isn’t, and so I always felt, like, there were characters in comics that were really interesting and deserve the opportunity to be kind of studied. And so I think that’s what Todd sees appealing about this idea.”
The film is expected to begin shooting in two weeks, so the hunt for a replacement will most likely be a top priority. It is being directed and co-written by [easyazon_link identifier=”B002RRXGKA” locale=”US” tag=”boundingintocomics-20″]Hangover[/easyazon_link] director Todd Phillips. Reports indicate it will have a budget around $55 million which is much lower than normal superhero projects.
What do you make of Baldwin exiting the project?