'Joker: Folie a Deux' heading for good opening in India

The much-anticipated sequel to director Todd Phillips' 'Joker', titled '

Joker: Folie a Deux

', starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga in lead roles, has finally debuted in India. The film hit theatres in the country on Wednesday, October 2, exactly 5 years after it debuted in 2019.
According to early estimates, the film which is opening on the Gandhi Jayanti holiday, is eyeing a Rs 10 crore start at the

box office

.

Reports on Koimoi.com state that the film had a good advance booking in major sectors across the country. The movie has reportedly sold tickets worth Rs 2.95 crores gross (excluding blocked seats) before the first show started.

Going by the advance booking, '

Joker 2

' is expected to earn an estimated collection of Rs 7-9 crores nett at the Indian box office on Day 1. While holiday collections are driven by walk-in audiences, the same margin does not apply for Hollywood films. It is observed that walk-in entries for such films are comparatively less.

Meanwhile, on the international front, the film is set to debut in theatres on Friday. However, industry forecasts suggest that the sequel may struggle to match the box office records set by its predecessor. In 2019, 'Joker' defied expectations, raking in an impressive $1.07 billion globally on a modest $55 million budget, becoming one of the most profitable comic book films ever made and securing 11 Academy Award nominations.

Despite the R-rated, its dark and gritty take on the infamous Batman villain, the original film, driven by Phoenix’s intense portrayal as Arthur Fleck managed to begin its box office run on an impressive collection of nearly $100 million. 'Joker 2', on the other hand, is expected to open with $50 million to $65 million from 4,100 North American theatres—significantly lower than the film's $96.2 million debut in 2019, which in turrn set a record for October openings.
While the predictions for its US opening are low, the film's international collections are expected to be higher, with estimated earnings between $80 million and $85 million over its opening weekend. This would bring its global box office debut to a range of $130 million to $150 million by Sunday. Sadly, these figures are nearly $100 million short of the $248.2 million worldwide collections.
'Folie a Deux', picks up with Phoenix’s Fleck, who is now imprisoned in

Arkham Asylum

. There he meets his muse

Harley Quinn

played by Lady Gaga. While the film has been described as a musical, Phillips clarified that it doesn’t fully embrace the genre.
Going by the current projections, the film which carries a significantly larger budget of $200 million, is unlikely to replicate the blockbuster success of the original.