Joker movie controversy: Use of pedophile Gary Glitter's song slammed by fans who call film 'immoral bulls**t'
Producers of critically acclaimed new film 'Joker' are facing a huge backlash for including a song by convicted pedophile Gary Glitter in the movie's soundtrack. The stunning thriller, with Joaquin Phoenix playing the lead character, is already a blockbuster after raking in $93.5 million across US theaters over the weekend.
However, producers are now being widely criticized by displeased fans after they realized Glitter's 1972 hit "Rock and Roll Part 2" was used in a pivotal scene in the movie.
As Phoenix dances down the stairs while transitioning into the twisted villain, the song plays in the background.
According to The Sun, quite a few viewers were highly critical of the choice of song. "Gary Glitter gets royalties for Joker. They're literally paying a pedophile to use his music in a movie about the consequences of child abuse," one Twitter user commented. "I'm off the fence - this movie is immoral b*******."
"Whose idea was it to play f******* Gary Glitter in Joker," another wrote.
In 2015, Glitter was sentenced to 16 years in prison for abusing three young girls. He is due for a parole hearing in 2021. Glitter, whose real name is Paul Gadd, was charged with attempted rape, four counts of indecent assault, and one count of engaging in sexual intercourse with a girl under 13.
Apart from the Glitter controversy, the Warner Brothers blockbuster has also came under fire from families of shooting victims, who said the movie could inspire violent incidents. The film sees Phoenix play a mentally ill comedian Arthur Fleck who commits mass murder.
In a letter to Warner Brothers, members of five families affected by the mass shooting at a cinema screening of 'The Dark Knight Rises' in July 2012 (which left 12 dead) said the depiction of the sinister killer "gave us pause."
They urged the company to instead use "its massive platform and influence to join us in our fight to build safer communities with fewer guns."
According to the Washington Post, the fear of violence prompted the New York Police Department to prepare for the worst, with undercover police officers deployed at almost every screening of the film.