Even in the ideal circumstances, Jared Leto’s Joker was a supporting character we caught up in the midst of his Joker run.
Even so, seeing Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker showed me that whatever vision Suicide Squad had for its Joker was just too ambitious.
Phoenix’s Joker looks a lot different than past incarnations, but it works because you have a whole film to explain and establish the transformation that makes him the villain audiences know.
His whole presence was mostly fluff and became a glorified marketing gimmick, and it’s hard for me to believe another film with him would’ve justified his existence.