Joker director Todd Phillips has congratulated Marvel Studios’ Deadpool & Wolverine for becoming the biggest R-rated movie ever.
How much has Deadpool & Wolverine earned at the box office?
At the time of writing, Deadpool & Wolverine has grossed over $1.142 billion at the global box office, enough to pass Joker’s $1.078 billion haul to earn the title of the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all time. This is now the third time that Ryan Reynolds‘ Merc with a Mouth has held the top spot after 2016’s Deadpool ($782 million) and 2018’s Deadpool 2 ($785 million).
In a congratulatory post on Instagram, Phillips shared an image of Deadpool dancing to the NSYNC song, “Bye Bye Bye,” atop the West 167th Street Step Stairs, which was made famous after Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck danced down them in Joker. The post also included a screenshot of the Variety article reporting that Deadpool & Wolverine had overtaken Joker as the highest-grossing R-rated film in history.
“Have to tip my hat to [Ryan Reynolds] and [Shawn Levy] for this absolute steam roller of a movie. We knew it was gonna be big, but this is too much,” Phillips captioned the post. “Congrats to everyone involved!!”
However, Deadpool & Wolverine’s record-breaking box office success could be shortlived as Phillips will have a chance to put Phoenix’s Joker back in the top spot before the end of the year. A sequel to the 2019 movie, titled Joker: Folie à Deux, is scheduled to be released by Warner Bros. Pictures in theaters on October 4, 2024. Phillips directed the DC movie in addition to co-writing the screenplay with Scott Silver.
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Phoenix returns to his Oscar-winning role of Arthur Fleck/Joker, with Lady Gaga joining him as Harleen Quinzel/Harley Quinn. Other cast members include Catherine Keener, Zazie Beetz, Harry Lawtey, Steve Coogan, Leigh Gill, Sharon Washington, Brendan Gleeson, Jacob Lofland, and Ken Leung.
Deadpool & Wolverine is currently playing in theaters, while Joker is streaming on Max.
