Joaquin Phoenix lost 52 pounds to play the Joker in an upcoming movie about the iconic villain.
"Joker" director Todd Phillips revealed the detail during a new interview with Josh Rottenberg for the Los Angeles Times. Both Phillips and Phoenix added that the character's origin story will be far more realistic and grounded than other comic-book adaptations.
"All I can do is approach the character the way I do and that's it," Phoenix, who is one of many actors to take on the role of the Joker, told the LA Times. "I just tried to do something that we felt was honest and unique. However you guys want to talk about it, knock yourself out."
Read more: Here is every actor who has played the Joker
Fans first caught a glimpse of Phoenix's thinner physique after paparazzi photos surfaced online, which were taken prior to the movie being filmed in New York City in 2018. The full extent of the transformation was seen in the first trailer for "Joker" that was released in April 2019.
The trailer showed Phoenix' Arthur Fleck living as a struggling comedian in Gotham City in the 1980s. One scene also showed shirtless Phoenix hunched over while a bench and holding a clown shoe, with his backbone protruding and a large bruise on his right shoulder. Another scene showed Phoenix standing in a living room, with his ribs visible.
The most recent trailer, released in August, included additional shots that indicate the drastic weight loss. Previously, costar Zazie Beetz told MTV News that the movie script was entirely rewritten while they were shooting and because of Phoenix's weight change, they weren't able to go back later and film reshoots.
"We had to do everything then because Joaquin had lost so much weight that we couldn't do reshoots later on so we were figuring it out," Beetz said.
"Joker" hits theaters on Friday, October 4. Beetz, Robert De Niro, Marc Maron, and Shea Whigham also star in the movie.
