Sheesh, why so seriously salty about people liking Downton Abbey? Last weekend, Rambo: Last Blood put out an ad mocking the tea-lovers who rushed out to see the Downton Abbey movie, making it #1 at the box office. This weekend, Saturday Night Live returned for its Season 45 premiere and skewered Downton as boring and low-stakes and -- gasp! -- for MOMS.
SNL's fake Downton Abbey trailer reveals itself in the end to actually be a fake ad for the controversial new Joker movie, arguing, "It's not perfect, but at least stuff happens."
Kate McKinnon as Maggie Smith = genius.
Joker has been in headlines lately for multiple controversies -- some fear the specific situations of violence in the movie may inspire more acts of violence in real life. The 2012 Aurora, Colorado shooting during Dark Knight Rises has been referenced many times. Warner Bros. said Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker is not an “endorsement of real-world violence of any kind." However, the families of Aurora victims are pushing back against Warner Bros. about political donations to candidates who oppose reforming gun laws.
Joker director Todd Phillips also touched a nerve with Keanu Reeves fans with his comments comparing the violence in Joker to the new John Wick: Chapter 3 movie. Then Warner Bros. cancelled red carpet interviews for the Joker premiere, noting, "A lot has been said about Joker, and we just feel it’s time for people to see the film."
Joker hasn't even opened for the public yet, but I do think this "controversy" is only going to make people more curious to see it this coming Friday, October 4. After rave reviews, including from CinemaBlend, Joker was already tracking to have the best October opening ever, potentially hitting $100 million. Joaquin Phoenix is already on Oscar watch lists once again.
Meanwhile, the poor Downton Abbey movie has done nothing to anyone, but it's very existence is apparently an affront to people who never cared about the TV show. It was #1 at the box office last weekend, which means we'll probably be getting a lot more TV show movie theatrical releases. (El Camino, the Breaking Bad movie, is coming next month.) A lot of "stuff" may not happen in the movie, but it got raves from fans who got exactly what they wanted.
This weekend, the #1 box office honor belongs to the new family movie Abominable, but Downton Abbey is still holding strong. Next weekend is all Joker's, though. I'm curious about how high it could go.
Watch more clips from SNL 45's premiere on YouTube. Phoebe Waller-Bridge will host next with Taylor Swift as musical guest. (I wonder if they tried to get Joaquin Phoenix to host for Joker weekend and he passed.) Keep up with everything else still heading to the big screen this year with our 2019 movie release date schedule.
