Fresh off the uproar over shelving a nearly-finished Batgirl, Warner Bros is now allegedly blocking screenings of a queer parody film involving DC’s Joker.
The People’s Joker is described as a trans coming-of-age narrative about an aspiring clown grappling with her gender identity while forming an underground comedy troupe and combating a fascistic caped crusader.
Directed and co-written by Vera Drew, who also stars as the adult version of the Joker, the film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on Tuesday night to rave reviews. However, remaining screenings were pulled and Polygon reports that a cease-and-desist order was served by Warner Bros. shortly before the premiere.
People lucky enough to have seen The People’s Joker are appalled at the turn of events, with several publicly repeating claims that the film clearly qualifies as parody and therefore WB should have no enforceable copyright claim.
\u201cThrilled to be going to Halloween Ends at @BeyondFest, but bummed I can't get tix for The People's Joker (yet\ud83e\udd1e). Crazy that Warner Bros. let @VeraDrew22 get all the way to TIFF before dropping a cease and desist. I've seen a cut of the movie, it rules, and it's obviously parody.\u201d— Jamie Jirak (@Jamie Jirak) 1663176077
\u201cHoly shit the illegal joker movie was just hit with a cease and desist from WB after playing its premiere showing at a film festival \nReminder that corporate copyright infringement is extremely funny and good especially when you use it to communicate the deeply personal\u201d— Samperson (Crime Arc) (@Samperson (Crime Arc)) 1663147925
\u201cIf @VeraDrew22's "The People's Joker" isn't protected by parody/fair use, then American copyright law is more broken than I thought it was. Ridiculous.\u201d— Brenden Gallagher (@Brenden Gallagher) 1663171802
The reality of the law in regards to a cease-and-desist is a little more complex, and the fact that TIFF takes place in Canada likely complicates the conversation. That said, a note ahead of the film claimed lawyers reviewed the material and believed it to fall under fair use, so if WB doesn’t back down, there may be a long and interesting fight ahead.
For now, folks excited by Drew’s trailer for The People’s Joker are mostly just frustrated about the film being pulled and the timing of Warner Bros opting to do this.
\u201cTHE PEOPLE'S JOKER has played once at TIFF and has been forced to be pulled and have the rest of the screenings cancelled. People should talk about this because the man doesn't want you to see it.\u201d— Justin Decloux (@Justin Decloux) 1663139964
\u201cI've mentioned my love for "The People's Joker" on here before, but the film is literally about how massive IP conglomerates make the creation of art impossible under capitalism, so the rights issue is both a travesty and an extension of the artwork.\u201d— Brenden Gallagher (@Brenden Gallagher) 1663174077
\u201cit is not an accident that trans folks are drawn to mutating and deforming existing IP, it is our way of subverting and throwing bombs at a cis white male capitalist superstructure that seeks to own and control our generation's myths and imaginations\n\nJUSTICE 4 THE PEOPLE'S JOKER\u201d— Jane Schoenbrun (@Jane Schoenbrun) 1663167896
\u201cTHE PEOPLE\u2019S JOKER:\n\nI genuinely believe this is a piece of accessible independent art that will save the lives of many trans and queer kids and we need to do whatever we can to make sure they get to see it. \n\n#TIFF22\u201d— Ryan Hancock @ #TIFF22 (@Ryan Hancock @ #TIFF22) 1663136801
The controversy certainly isn't helping Warner Bros rapidly devolving reputation, plagued by accusations that they're stripping diversity from their existing line-up in an attempt to cater to middle America after being bought by Discovery.
But while we await the final fate of The People’s Joker — Warner Bros itself, quite frankly — you can at least check out the trailer for the movie below. As long as it's allowed to exist on the internet, anyway.
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