The Joker movies aren’t connected to the Batman universe – but there’s a good reason

As the world of Gotham expands, there’s more bats and Jokers to keep tabs on than ever before – but the Joker films stand apart from the Batman universe, and that’s a good thing.

It would be easy to assume that Joker, being a solo series for the famous supervillain, is connected to one of the other pre-existing Caped Crusaders. And with Christian Bale, Ben Affleck, and Robert Pattinson all taking up the mantle, there’s plenty of worlds for him to fit into.

But that’s not the case, and both Joker and Joker: Folie à Deux actually stand out from the rest of the Joker-Batman fare.

So, does Joaquin Phoenix’s clown fit anywhere in the Batman franchise? Here’s what we know.

Is Joker connected to any Batman universe?

Both Joker and Joker: Folie à Deux aren’t part of any preexisting Batman universe, meaning they’re unrelated to Robert Pattinson and Matt Reeves’ newest world, too.

From as early as 2019, when the first Joker movie was released, both Joker director Todd Phillips and The Batman director Matt Reeves were vocal about their projects being separate.

“When I was working on [The Batman] script, and got deep into the script, Joker hadn’t come out yet. I didn’t know what Joker was or what it was going to be,” Reeves explained in 2022 [via Total Film].

“I became aware of it once we were very deep into the film, and the fact that they were grounding things in a way that was reminiscent of things that we were doing, that wasn’t planned,” he continued. “Joker was always meant to be a very specific standalone that Joaquin [Phoenix], and Todd [Phillips] were doing. There was never really any discussion of crossover.”

Warner Bros. Pictures

Equally, Phillips has pushed away rumors of the worlds being connected, simply replying, “No, definitely not,” when asked [via Variety] if Phoenix’s Joker and Pattinson’s Batman would ever meet.

There’s one simple and logical reason as to why it wouldn’t work: Reeves’ The Batman already has its own Joker in the form of Barry Keoghan. He was first introduced briefly in Arkham Asylum in the 2022 superhero movie, and theories believe he’ll play a larger role in the upcoming Batman 2.

As for other Batman universes – Christopher Nolan’s and Zack Snyder’s – the same rule applies. Both have Jokers in the form of Heath Ledger and Jared Leto, so the character quota has already been filled.

There’s one small detail that could allow for theories: the timeline. Joker takes place in the year 1981, with Joker: Folie à Deux presumed to take place shortly after, during Arthur’s trial. We see a young Bruce Wayne in the first movie, who looks as though he’s about ten years old.

This means that no “Batman” currently exists in Arthur’s world, with Bruce Wayne in his pre-vigilante adolescence. This might lead some to believe that this version of Bruce Wayne could grow up to be Robert Pattinson’s Batman, but that’s a stretch.

Unless Barry Keoghan’s Joker is suddenly revealed to be a copycat or disciple of Phoenix’s Joker, and it takes place in the same universe years later, it’s unlikely we’ll ever see Phoenix and Gaga running around in Matt Reeves’ Batman universe.

For more, check out our guide on how to watch all the Batman movies. You can also check out our Joker 2 review, and find out whether Joker 2 is actually a musical. Not enough? Make sure you keep an eye on all the best movies like Joker to watch ahead of the sequel.