It turns out that dominating the pop culture discourse for a month can be very good for a movie, as “Joker” is about to become the first R-rated movie ever to hit a billion dollars at the box office. That’s no small accomplishment for a movie with a $55 million budget.
Though the film’s critical reception cooled considerably since it garnered a lengthy standing ovation in Venice, that obviously hasn’t affected its box office take — after a month, it’s the biggest movie that Warner Bros has put out this year, both at the domestic box office and internationally.