The original Joker film at least created something of a divide between critics and fans, with a critic score of 68% compared to a higher audience score of 89%. With some rather dismal reviews for For Joker: Folie a Deux, it was perhaps logical to assume this would happen again. Instead, movies’ ratings are even lower than their already terrible ratings from critics.

Currently, Joker has a 39% rating from critics, tying Black Adam and coming in below Shazam: Fury of the Gods. But the audience score is even worse: 37%, indicating that those who liked Joker 1 and lined up to see the opening of Folie a Deux disliked it much more than the first film. The original, of course, wasn’t a musical and didn’t feature an ending that everyone seems to despise.

These audience scores are among the lowest in DC history. Do you think the original Suicide Squad is lower? Wrong, 56%. Black Adam? Wrong, 88%(!). Green Lantern? No, 45%. You have to go all the way back to old, terrible DC content like Steel, Batman and Robin, and Catwoman to find lower scores.

At the very least, this is a critical disaster for DC, but whether that will turn into a financial disaster remains to be seen. Joker: Folie a Deux’s budget has reportedly ballooned to $200 million, almost four times the first time’s $55 million budget, which would make it a billion worldwide. So even half of that would still be considered a financial success, although the concept probably ends here as Todd Phillips says he’s done with the DC Universe now.

The announcement of a musical Joker sequel was bizarre when it was first confirmed, and it remains bizarre in practice because the sequel largely feels strange and generally just unnecessary. That is not the case zero fans, sure, but these scores are indeed among the lowest in DC history, and the lowest during the entire DCEU/Elseworlds era. This also wasn’t a case of “the critics got it wrong,” which can sometimes happen with superhero features. This was just a miss for everyone.

We are waiting again for the opening of the cash register. The company is reportedly expecting a global opening of $140 million, which is… pretty good, and includes $45-57 million domestically. Even if it’s a percentage lower, it’s hard not to imagine the film being profitable even if it doesn’t come close to the original. I’m definitely convinced to skip it at this point.

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