Variety is reporting that actor, comedian and podcaster Marc Maron is in talks to join Warner Bros. Pictures‘ Joker origin movie. He will be playing a booking agent on the talk show hosted by Robert De Niro’s character, who winds up booking the man who will become The Joker and plays a part in driving him mad.
Maron will join a cast led by Joaquin Phoenix (The Master, Walk the Line) as the Clown Prince of Crime, along with Zazie Beets (Deadpool 2), Frances Conroy (American Horror Story) and Robert De Niro (The King of Comedy).
Maron is a veteran comedian who broke out in recent years thanks to his wildly popular WTF podcast where he interviews actors, musicians, comedians and other celebrities (including former President Barack Obama). He branched out into acting with three seasons of his eponymous IFC sitcom Maron, as well as a co-starring role on the current Netflix hit GLOW. His feature film work includes Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates, Sleepwalk with Me and Almost Famous, the latter in which he famously yelled out, “LOCK THE GATES!” He will next be seen starring in director Lynn Shelton’s indie drama Sword of Trust.
Although Warner Brothers is still moving forward with a Jared Leto starring Joker film, Phoenix’s Joker has already gotten the official green light. Written by Scott Silver (The Fighter) and directed by Todd Philips (The Hangover), the film will be loosely based on Alan Moore and Brian Bolland’s classic 1988 graphic novel Batman: The Killing Joke, and is unique for the superhero genre in its relatively small $55 million dollar budget.
The Joker film is set to begin filming this September, with a release date of October 4, 2019.
(Photo credit: Getty Images)
