‘Joker’ Director Todd Phillips Tells Movie Theaters to ‘Stop Showing Commercials’ Before Films: ‘They Take the Air Out of the Room’

“Joker” and “The Hangover” director Todd Phillips recently participated in a Hollywood poll for Empire magazine about the future of moviegoing and expressed his desire for movie theaters to get rid of showing commercials before films. Phillips joined fellow filmmakers like George Miller, Sean Baker and Daniel Scheinert in being confident that movie theaters will never go out of style, but that doesn’t mean the theatrical experience couldn’t use a few updates.

“We are hard-wired to gather in the sharing of stories,” Miller said about why movie theaters won’t cease to exist in the future. “I believe cinemas are, for the most part, doing everything they can…”

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Phillips suggested theaters could be doing a bit more, especially to combat the desire from audiences just to stream films at home. He sent theaters the following message: “Stop showing commercials before the movies. We’ve paid for our tickets. We’re excited to be there. The commercials tend to take the air out of the room.”

Scheinert, the Oscar-winning co-director of “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” said that theaters will prevail because they “encourage community” and that’s ultimately what audiences crave (“social spaces that do more than shuffle you in and out and charge lots for popcorn”).

“I love when folks dress up for ‘Barbie,’ or dance at ‘RRR,’ or sit and chat for hours over a beer after seeing (and reading about) ‘It Ends With Us,’ or scream at the screen about how heartbreak feels so fucking good in a place like this,” he added, referring at the end to Nicole Kidman’s beloved and viral AMC Theatres ad.

Phillips is in theaters now with the “Joker” sequel, “Joker: Folie à Deux,” although it has struggled to recapture the $1 billion success of the original 2019 film. The sequel has earned $201 million worldwide since opening in theaters Oct. 4. It’s currently available to watch from home on PVOD platforms.

Head over to Empire’s website to read more highlights from the Hollywood poll.