Joker: Folie à Deux director Todd Phillips and star Joaquin Pheonix recently opened up about the film’s controversial ending and they are both defending it. Spoilers ahead! At the end of the film, Art

Director Todd Phillips told Entertainment Weekly that Arthur confesses because he realizes the system is corrupt and unchangeable. Phillips stated, “He realized that everything is so corrupt, it’s never going to change, and the only way to fix it is to burn it all down.”

He plays the bizarrely goofy titular character, Arthur Fleck, who is a complicated man that showcases a wide range of emotions. After all, he is known for an iconic laugh that comes about as a compulsion during moments that are anything but funny.

Joker: Folie à Deux director Todd Phillips has broken down the reasoning behind the most controversial storytelling beats in his sequel.