Vera Drew dishes on ‘The People’s Joker,’ happy beginnings & what makes ‘Batman Forever’ so queer
The People’s Joker.Actually, we take that back: You have. Sort of… That’s because Vera Drew’s brilliantly bonkers film is part trans coming-of-age narrative, part superhero origin story, one that liberally parodies the wide world of Batman and DC Comics, specifically the crimefighter’s iconic cackling nemesis, The Joker.
Technically, that makes it the queerest Batman movie ever—and if you’ve ever seen late, gay director Joel Schumacher’s campy, kinky Batman Forever or Batman & Robin, you know that’s saying a lot.Subscribe to our newsletter for your front-row seat to all things entertainment with a sprinkle of everything else queer.When The People’s Joker made its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival in 2022, Drew shared that a certain “media conglomerate” sent her an angry letter “pressuring” her not to screen the film, despite positive buzz and audience reaction.
For a minute there, it almost seemed like the powers that be (whether that was DC Comics or Warner Bros was never disclosed) had managed to squash this scrappy, outlaw indie.What good is parody law if we can’t use it to trans some characters’ genders?
The People’s Joker loosely adapts the material of the film Joker into a story of a trans stand-up comedian, with several notable DC Comics characters appearing throughout.
