The Joker movie should be "in the running" for a Best Picture Oscar, according to film festival director

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Will the Joker movie get an encore at the Oscars?

Joker movie
(Image credit: Warner Bros.)

The Joker movie hype just won’t die down. Fresh off a flurry of five-star reviews – including our own which you can read here – the comic book film, starring Joaquin Phoenix and charting the Crown Prince of Crime’s origins, is now getting some serious awards buzz. The director of the Venice Film Festival, which hosted the Joker movie’s first bow, expects it to be in the running for a handful of categories, including Best Picture.

When asked by Deadline about the Joker movie’s Oscar prospects, including the interviewer name-checking Best Picture, Alberto Barbera said: “They’re very good. Absolutely, it will be in the running [for an Academy Award nomination].” He added that it is “a strong, unexpected and original film.”

In fact, when faced with predicting some of the Oscar big hitters come 2020 from the Venice Film Festival, Barbera firmly stated, “It’s hard to say. It’s so unpredictable and there’s a long way to go,” before doubling down on one movie, “Joker, for sure.”

If the Joker movie does get the Best Picture nod, it would be the second comic book movie ever to do so, with Marvel’s Black Panther having been nominated for the top Academy Award earlier this year.

As Barbera says, though, there’s still a while to go yet. There are plenty of movies between now and the expected Academy Awards nomination release date in January 2020.

This news, though, should put a smile on the faces of fans who are eagerly anticipating Joker’s October 4 release and may yet prove the tide is turning when it comes to more quote-unquote ‘popular’ movie successes at the Oscars.

Bradley Russell
Bradley Russell

I'm the Senior Entertainment Writer here at GamesRadar+, focusing on news, features, and interviews with some of the biggest names in film and TV. On-site, you'll find me marveling at Marvel and providing analysis and room temperature takes on the newest films, Star Wars and, of course, anime. Outside of GR, I love getting lost in a good 100-hour JRPG, Warzone, and kicking back on the (virtual) field with Football Manager. My work has also been featured in OPM, FourFourTwo, and Game Revolution.