Joker's quest of Acceptance was the secret sauce of the movie
Est vs Actual domestic box office revenue: $244 – 298MM vs $335MM
97% of the events are borrowed from 3 mythological tales
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. Mythological tales reveal the invisible plot structure of any story
1A. 97% of the events are borrowed 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.
Detailed mirroring of each character’s primary quest to their respective mythological tales is in section “3A. Quests of characters and their mythological counterparts”
1B. 32 mythological tales are the source of all stories, even the untold ones
Human beings are driven by 16 fundamental desires. Every desire, whether encountering fulfilment or unfulfillment, gives rise to two distinct quests. Thus, a spectrum of 32 unique quests mirrors every human desire.
We have discovered mythological tales from across civilizations that uniquely portray each one of these 32 human quests. While each mythological tale stands as a distinct quest, the true magic unfolds when these tales are combined. This synergy is evident in the epics of Odyssey and Ramayan, where various universal quests seamlessly intertwine.
Combining any five tales from the 32, generates a staggering 24 million unique story plots. Take it a step further, by combining six tales the possibilities explode to an astounding 600 million!
The plot of Joker is a subset of plot structure #2,708 that interweaves the tales of Karn, Joseph & Inanna.
2. Plot structure potential of Joker: $244-298MM
2A. Plot structure evaluation
An analysis of Blockbuster, Hit & Flop plots has led to the discovery of Mythosis Code. The Code reveals the story principles shared by all Blockbusters. We use the Code to estimate a story’s potential.
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 interweave different quests to create a tight plot structure. Interweaving occurs when events of 2 quests occur simultaneously in the story. Blockbusters have a quest interweaving threshold of 0.5. Joker quest interweaving score of 0.67 is above par. An example of interweaving the quests of Arthur & Murray:
2B. Estimating revenue potential from the plot structure
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. Murray & Wayne, both have a shallow quest.
We have created an algorithm by assigning weights to the principles of The Mythosis Code. The algorithm calculates the potency of a story’s plot structure and estimates its corresponding audience appeal. Blockbuster plot structures have a score of at least 0.64 and appeal to 20% of the audiences.
Joker has a script potential score is 0.28 and the movie will appeal to 8.10 – 9.90% of the population. Our estimate of the movie’s revenues from its audience appeal is $244 – 298MM in the domestic market. The movie’s actual revenue was $335MM.
3. The ideal plot structure of Joker
We have identified 32 universal quests that represent every human desire. These quests are the superset of thousands of stories across cultures that reflect our collective subconscious. Each quest has a structured sequence of events divided into 5 major arcs.
We map a character’s quest to the relevant mythological tale (universal quest) which reveals the gaps in their quest, if any. The ideal Plot Structure is constructed by plugging these gaps with the missing events from the tale. These events strengthen both the journey of characters as well as the weaving of quests without altering the story.
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.
Tags:2019, Acceptance, Curiosity, DC Films, Inanna, Joseph, Karn, Long range prediction, Mythology, Plot Structure, Scott Silver, Status, storytelling, Todd Phillips, Warner Bros. Pictures
