That’ll put a smile on some faces.
Despite being mired in controversy for what felt like eons, Joker has transformed from artsy comic book flick to one of the biggest movies of 2019—and as of this past weekend, it’s taken another record for its own. Box Office Mojo reports that Joker has now earned just over $1.246 billion worldwide.
That’s enough to make it the highest-earning R-rated film in the world (roughly equivalent to an MA15+ rating in Australia), with current expectations that it could ultimately end its run at the box office north of $1.319 billion. In the United States, Joker is the seventh-largest R-rated release, and has overtaken the international box office totals of DC alumni like Wonder Woman and Batman v. Superman (both rated PG-13).
Of course, it took said crown from another comic book movie—the decidedly less self-serious Deadpool.
Deadpool’s original theatrical run made $1.077 billion across the world, but a follow-up, PG-13-rated second run took the movie’s grand total to $1.151 billion, setting the target for Todd Phillips’ DC comics origin story to beat. Ryan Reynolds demurred his status as the star of the biggest R-rated film around in a matter befitting Wade Wilson on Twitter over the weekend, with a suitably curse-y poster edit:
R-Rated box office congratulatory posts aren’t like the ones you’re used to… pic.twitter.com/OTy2BqIP4f
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) October 25, 2019
You’d think, given that these are R-rated films, he’d at least not have to censor himself here, but there you go. Even if Joaquin Phoenix wasn’t entirely sure if he’d step into the bloodstained shoes of Arthur Fleck a second time, we can probably guarantee that more than a few people at Warner Bros. would really, really like him to after this weekend.