Joker Director Todd Phillips Calls for Theaters to Eliminate Pre-Movie Commercials: “They take the air out of the room”

Todd Phillips was expected to have a big success in theaters last month, but instead, audiences experienced a major flop that hasn’t happened in a while. Joker: Folie à Deux received very negative feedback from both critics and viewers.

As of October 31, 2024, Joker: Folie à Deux has made $58.1 million in the U.S. and Canada, and $143.5 million in other countries, for a total of $201.6 million worldwide.

The movie needs to make $450 million to break even, but Warner Bros. thinks it only needs $375 million. They later said that the film could lose the studio between $125 and $200 million while it’s in theaters, mainly because it had a much bigger budget than the first movie, which was one of the highest-grossing R-rated films ever.

While still dealing with the movie’s poor release, Phillips took part in a Hollywood poll for Empire magazine about the future of going to the movies.

He expressed his desire for theaters to stop showing commercials before films. Phillips, along with other directors like George Miller, Sean Baker, and Daniel Scheinert, believes that movie theaters will always be popular, but they could be improved.

Phillips thinks theaters should do more to compete with people who prefer to watch movies at home. He suggested that theaters eliminate commercials before films because people have already paid for their tickets and are excited to see the movie. He mentioned that commercials can spoil the mood.

Stop showing commercials before the movies. We’ve paid for our tickets. We’re excited to be there. The commercials tend to take the air out of the room.

Reports say that many people are leaving the theater during ‘Joker: Folie à Deux.’ Phillips is right that since audiences have already bought their tickets, they should enjoy the movie without theaters trying to make more money by showing ads. However, it’s unlikely that this will change anytime soon.

Theaters have faced huge losses ever since streaming services became cheap and popular, and the COVID-19 pandemic almost put many of them out of business.

Do you agree with Phillips? Share your thoughts in the comments below!