Joker
Its success lies in the rarely used quest of Acceptance
EST V ACT domestic box office revenue
$244-298 V $335MM
Mythosis universal quests used
3
Audience appeal
8.10% – 9.90%
Script Score
0.28
Directed by Todd Phillips, Joker follows the story of a struggling clown/ stand-up artiste seeking recognition in his personal and professional life, finally gaining acceptance from an unexpected quarter. Mythosis, with the help of mythological tales, has extracted the plot structure of the movie to estimate and unlock its potential.
1. The invisible plot structure of Joker
1A. The script of Joker borrows 97% of its events from 3 mythological tales
Arthur’s quest is driven by the desire to gain approval of others and mirrors the tale of Karn from Hindu mythology. Both Karn and Arthur strive for acceptance in the face of abuse, ridicule, betrayal and rejection.
Murray’s quest is driven by the desire to explore and mirrors the tale of Inanna from Sumerian mythology. Both Inanna and Murray pay the price for their imprudence of venturing into unknown territory.
Wayne’s quest is driven by the desire to gain respect and borrows events from the tale of Joseph from Abrahamic mythology. Both Joseph & Wayne are victims of manipulation.
NOTE: Detailed mirroring of each character’s primary quest to their respective mythological tales is in section “3A. Quests of characters and their mythological counterparts”
Mythosis plot structure
#2,708
Tales interweaved
Karn, Joseph & Inanna
I. How does interweaving mythological tales lead to infinite story plots?
II. Can the pursuit of a Desire have more than one quest?
2. The potential of Joker’s plot structure: $244-298MM
The interweaving of 32 mythological tales can generate a billion unique stories. By using these 32 tales, we can extract the plot structure of any story across various genres. Our study of blockbuster, hit, and flop plot structures led to the discovery of the Mythosis Code, a set of principles for creating compelling stories. The plot structure of a story is analyzed to see how well it adheres to these storytelling principles.
2A. Plot structure evaluation of Joker
- All Blockbusters have at least 3 universal quests. Joker uses 3 universal quests of Acceptance, Curiosity and Status
- In Blockbusters, each universal quest is mirrored by ONLY ONE character. Arthur mirrors the universal quest of Acceptance. Murray mirrors the quest of Curiosity. Wayne mirrors the universal quest of Status.
- Every Blockbuster character borrows at least 35% of the universal quest. Arthur borrows 48% of events from the quest of Acceptance. Murray borrows 16% from the quest of Curiosity. Wayne borrows 10% from the quest of Status.
- Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. Joker quest interweaving score of 0.67 is above par.
An example of interweaving the quests of Arthur & Murray:
2B. Box office revenue estimation of Joker
Joker’s plot structure reveals a very deep quest of acceptance attributed to Arthur. Arthur’s quest almost mirrors half of events from the universal quest of acceptance. However, both Murray & Wayne have shallow quests.
The Script Score measures a plot structure’s adherence to the four principles of Mythosis Code. We use the Script Score to estimate a movie’s audience appeal & revenues. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Script Score
0.28
Audience appeal
8.10% – 9.90%
I. How is Mythosis Code used to estimate revenues?
II. Aren’t box-office revenues influenced by several factors beyond just the story plot?
3. The ideal plot structure of Joker
We have identified 32 mythological tales, the superset of all tales across cultures. The quests of these tales have also recurred over time periods. They represent human behaviours that are deeply embedded in our shared memories. Each tale is the richest expression of the pursuit of a human desire. The tales have a unique pattern of events spread over 5 major arcs.
Mapping a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. Plugging these gaps with the missing events deepens the character quest. The missing events also provide an opportunity for interweaving the various quests. These events strengthen the story and unlock its hidden potential.
3A.Quest of characters and their mythological counterparts
Quest 1: Arthur mirrors the universal quest for Acceptance
Arthur’s desire for Acceptance stems from the need to gain approval of others. The tale of Karn from Hindu mythology is the universal quest for Acceptance.
Quest 2: Murray mirrors the universal quest for Curiosity
Murray’s desire for Curiosity stems from the need to explore & discover. The tale of Inanna from Sumerian mythology is the universal quest for Curiosity.
Quest 3: Wayne mirrors the universal quest for Status
Wayne’s desire for Status stems from the need for social standing. The tale of Joseph from Abrahamic mythology is the universal quest for Status.
3B.Gaps in the current plot structure
The shallow quests of Wayne & Murray weakens the plot structure.
3C.Unlocking the hidden potential
The plot of Joker is a subset of plot structure #2,708 that interweaves the tales of Karn, Joseph & Inanna.
Contact us for Joker’s plot structure #2,708
Tags: Inanna, Karn, Joseph, Curiosity, Status, Acceptance, Todd Phillips, Scott Silver, DC Films, Warner Bros. Pictures, 2019