A Movie Scene Listening, The Joker from B1 to C2

The Joker - Official Teaser Trailer Script

(The scene opens with a bleak view of Gotham City. Arthur Fleck is sitting in a therapy session with a social worker.)

ARTHUR (V.O.): My mother always tells me... to smile and put on a happy face.

(Cut to Arthur working on the streets of Gotham, dressed as a clown and holding a large yellow "Everything Must Go" retail sign. A group of teenagers suddenly steals the sign and runs into an alley. Arthur chases them, and they brutally smash the sign over his face, leaving him beaten on the ground.)

ARTHUR (V.O.): She told me I had a purpose... to bring laughter and joy to the world.

(The scene shifts to Arthur in his apartment, gently washing his fragile mother, Penny, in a bathtub. They are later seen dancing together in the living room, watching a talk show on television.)

ARTHUR: Is it just me... or is it getting crazier out there?

(Arthur is riding a public bus. He makes funny faces at a little child sitting in front of him. The child’s mother turns around sharply.)

BUS MOTHER: Can you please stop bothering my kid?

(Arthur suddenly suffers a severe medical fit and begins to laugh uncontrollably and painfully, unable to stop. The mother looks away uncomfortably.)

(Cut back to the therapy session. The office looks run-down and institutional.)

SOCIAL WORKER: Arthur... does it help to have someone to talk to?

(Arthur just looks at her, a strained, artificial smile slowly forming on his face.)

(The music swells—Jimmy Durante singing "Smile". We see a montage of Gotham’s decay: garbage piling up, crowded subways, and escalating street violence. On a television screen, billionaire Thomas Wayne addresses the public.)

THOMAS WAYNE (ON TV): What kind of coward would do something that cold-blooded? Someone who hides behind a mask.

(Arthur is seen in an alleyway, violently kicked by businessmen. Later, he stands in front of a mirror, forcing his mouth open with his fingers to create a wide, painful smile while a single tear rolls down his cheek.)

(The transformation begins. Arthur is seen running through the streets, dropping his briefcase, and slowly changing his attire. He begins dating a single mother from his building, Sophie, though the atmosphere remains heavy.)

(We see Arthur backstage at a comedy club, laughing hysterically at his own notes. He steps onto the stage under a spotlight, completely alone.)

ARTHUR (V.O.): I used to think that my life was a tragedy... but now I realize... it's a comedy.

(The climax of the trailer features a series of rapid, iconic images: Protesters filling the streets wearing clown masks, fighting with the police inside a subway train, and Arthur—now with green hair, a sharp red suit, and full clown makeup—dancing ecstatically down a massive flight of concrete stairs.)

(The final scene takes place in the bright, colorful studio of a late-night television talk show. The host, Murray Franklin, is about to introduce his guest.)

MURRAY FRANKLIN: When you bring him out... can you introduce him as Joker?

(The curtains part. Arthur, completely transformed into the Joker, steps out onto the stage, does a theatrical spin, and smiles directly into the television camera.)