IT’S NO JOKER!
Fears Phoenix Batman sequel could spark copycat killings
AN EXPLOSION of gun violence across America has prompted mental health experts to warn the newly announced sequel to the Joaquin Phoenix supervillain movie
Joker could encourage copycats or inspire mass murders!
The original Joker focused on the origins of Batman’s arch-enemy, a downtrodden loner with mental health issues who embarks on a senseless killing spree. It was a surprise hit, raking in over $1 billion at the global box office.
But in the light of recent shootings — including a teenage gunman who had been bullied executing 21 children and teachers at an Uvalde, Texas, elementary school — mental health professionals are warning people about the destructive impact of violent movies and media.
“Now is not the time to screen the new Joker film
— or any other film that depicts graphic and gratuitous violence,” says Los
Angeles– based therapist Dr. Gary Brown. “There are significant risk factors in the environment we’re in right now as a nation.”
The 2019 Joker movie triggered mass shooting threats at movie theaters across the U.S., leading the
FBI to issue warnings on the day of the movie’s opening. Another film prominently featuring the Joker character, The Dark Knight, was being screened during the mass shooting at an Aurora,
Colo., movie theater in 2012. Tragically, 12 people were killed and 70 injured.
When apprehended, shooter James Holmes chillingly told cops: “I am the Joker.” Holmes is now serving life in prison.
“The amount of gratuitous violence that we see, and particularly the amount of gore depicted, really does tend to devalue human life,” notes Dr. Brown.
The new movie, Joker: Folie à Deux, is said to be a musical starring Phoenix and Lady Gaga.
“I don’t know how America would react to a violent musical,” says Dr. Brown.
“It may depend upon how graphically the scenes are presented.”