Alec Baldwin Quits Joker Origin Movie

Alec Baldwin has dropped out of the Joker origin movie citing scheduling conflicts, just days after reportedly being cast as Batman’s father Thomas Wayne in the film. This development came a few hours after Baldwin tweeted that he had not been “hired to play a role in [Joker] as some Donald Trump manque” in response to another report.

Speaking to USA Today on Wednesday, Baldwin said: "I'm no longer doing that movie", putting it down to ‘scheduling’ issues being the problem. "I'm sure there are 25 guys who can play that part,” he added. The Joker movie is set to begin filming September 10.

Baldwin is involved with two TV projects – game show Match Game on ABC, talk show The Alec Baldwin Show which premieres in autumn also on ABC – in addition to his role as Enzo Ferrari in the film Lamborghini, which began filming in April. He was most recently seen in Mission: Impossible – Fallout.

Baldwin’s tweet, which came via arts charity foundation account, was issued against an earlier report on Monday from The Hollywood Reporter, which claimed that Baldwin’s Wayne would have been “a cheesy and tanned businessman who is more in the mould of a 1980s Donald Trump”. The 30 Rock alum won an Emmy for his portrayal of the US President on Saturday Night Live, which is likely why the producers thought of him in the first place.

Directed by Todd Phillips (The Hangover), who also serves as co-writer alongside Scott Silver (The Fighter), the Joker movie stars Joaquin Phoenix in the lead, in addition to Robert De Niro, Frances Conroy, Deadpool 2’s Zazie Beetz, and GLOW star Marc Maron. The film has no connection to the existing DC film universe, which includes Justice League, Wonder Woman, and others.

Joker is slated to release October 4, 2019. Around that, the DC film universe continues with Aquaman in December, Shazam! in April 2019, and Wonder Woman 1984 in November 2019.