Joaquin Phoenix Enforced “No A**hole” Rule On “Joker” Set

Joaquin Phoenix is a revered actor in his own right but his latest performance in Joker has been applauded across the board, even by those who’ve railed against the film’s premise. You can only imagine the type of discipline needed to get into the dark space that Joaquin Phoenix stayed in while filming. According to one of his co-hosts, there was a certain set of rules put in place by Phoenix himself to ensure the energy on set was right.

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Josh Pais, who plays Arthur Fleck’s boss, recently sat down with The Hollywood Reporter where he dished out on the two rules he agreed to before actually joining the cast. Apparently, the two rules are 1) the person must be a good actor and 2) no assholes.

“I auditioned once with casting directors, and they were enthusiastic,” he explained “They gave it to Todd, and then I had a meeting with Todd. He said, ‘I loved your tape. I just want to make sure that you’re not an asshole because one person on set can really ruin the whole vibe of the thing.'”

Adding, “Joaquin told Todd, ‘I don’t care who you cast, just make sure everybody is a really good actor—and no assholes.’ So, I guess I passed the test. That makes it official, right?”

It appears as though Joaquin’s dedication encouraged everyone else to follow suit. “I felt like I had to bring my A-game, and everybody on the crew felt the same,” Pais revealed. “There was very little extraneous work going on.”