Todd Phillips admittedly needed to fill big shoes when making Joker. Luckily, he had several movies to draw from as he re-interpreted the Clown Prince of Crime.
![Taxi Driver](http://images.ctfassets.net/3m6gg2lxde82/4f5acER0LvgpZgwHMZwVYU/29658153f68332d12b75574c574810e6/taxi-driver-2.png?w=590&h=332&fit=fill&f=faces&q=90&fm=webp)
A disturbed New York cab driver befriends a teenage hooker and frees her from her pimp.
![Raging Bull](http://images.ctfassets.net/3m6gg2lxde82/6HlAFxi6wAuO3QHjSJ8r1n/86ff7fe35a40957268d64cf1307d20d2/raging-bull.png?w=590&h=332&fit=fill&f=faces&q=90&fm=webp)
Another Scorsese classic with Robert De Niro, a violent, obsessive boxer slowly ruins everything he has in and out of the ring.
![http://aple.tmsimg.com/assets/p192248_i_h10_ah.jpg?w=1920&h=1080](http://images.ctfassets.net/3m6gg2lxde82/1SgzWcIwUUU5xmia2NZWjd/99a291178f47c8b2ce1d9883ac9bd497/http___aple.tmsimg.com_assets_p192248_i_h10_ah.jpg?w=590&h=332&fit=fill&f=faces&q=90&fm=webp)
Yes, Phillips did work on it. But there was plenty to draw from this ridiculous comedy about three guys dealing with a patchy memory of a bachelor party in Vegas.
![http://aple.tmsimg.com/assets/p68117_i_h10_ab.jpg](http://images.ctfassets.net/3m6gg2lxde82/3SjyTrkIxoaIoXZOnXo0qC/971793378497346a53ff6fd31e78e1aa/http___aple.tmsimg.com_assets_p68117_i_h10_ab.jpg?w=590&h=332&fit=fill&f=faces&q=90&fm=webp)
A man disfigured with a large smile permanently on his face, Gwynplaine is hopeless as a freakshow star until he meets Josiana. The Joker character in the comics was based on Gwynplaine, but Phillips was able to pull a bit of his own inspiration from this drama-horror.
![http://aple.tmsimg.com/assets/p785_i_h11_ab.jpg](http://images.ctfassets.net/3m6gg2lxde82/69BeSgz7IgsLi6SDYuQTh6/b526a47b61eacf8286699ac0c38e04a2/http___aple.tmsimg.com_assets_p785_i_h11_ab.jpg?w=590&h=332&fit=fill&f=faces&q=90&fm=webp)
NYPD officer Frank Serpico is out to expose corruption but ends up being targeted by his friends on the force in this 1970s neo-noir.