The U.S. Military has advised service members to be alert to the potential for mass shootings at screenings of the upcoming DC villain movie Joker. The warning went out to service members following the distribution of a bulletin from the FBI on the risk of possible violence alluded to in social media posts from incel extremists, who have made threats to recreate the theater shootings in Aurora, Colorado which took place during screenings of another Joker-centric film, The Dark Knight.
“While our standard practice is to not comment on specific intelligence products, the FBI is in touch with our law enforcement and private sector partners about the online posts,” an FBI spokesperson said. “As always, we encourage the public to remain vigilant and to promptly report suspicious activity to law enforcement.”
Additionally, according to a separate Army memo, Texas law enforcement had intercepted “disturbing and very specific chatter… regarding the targeting of an unknown movie theater during the release” on the dark web. The following email was circulated by the military ahead of Joker‘s release.
Posts on social media have made reference to involuntary celibate (“incel”) extremists replicating the 2012 theater shooting in Aurora, Colorado, at screenings of the Joker movie at nationwide theaters. This presents a potential risk to DOD personnel and family members, though there are no known specific credible threats to the opening of the Joker on 4 October.
Incels are individuals who express frustration from perceived disadvantages to starting intimate relationships. Incel extremists idolize violent individuals like the Aurora movie theater shooter. They also idolize the Joker character, the violent clown from the Batman series, admiring his depiction as a man who must pretend to be happy, but eventually fights back against his bullies.
When entering theaters, identify two escape routes, remain aware of your surroundings, and remember the phrase “run, hide, fight.” Run if you can. If you’re stuck, hide (also referred to as “sheltering in place”), and stay quiet. If a shooter finds you, fight with whatever you can.
“We do this routinely because the safety and security of our workforce is paramount,” stated an Army spokesperson. “We want our workforce to be prepared and diligent on personal safety both inside the workplace and out.”
While Joker has not yet been seen outside of the film festival circuit, the promotional campaign for the film has already drawn the attention and support of incels (an online community of men who identify as “involuntarily celibate”). The film sees Joaquin Phoenix portray the infamous comic book character as a lonely, misunderstood, disenfranchised individual who is pushed to acts of violence by his circumstances.
It was probably inevitable that this interpretation of the character would be upheld as a folk hero by people in certain corners of the internet, who blame their feelings of insecurity or disempowerment on external forces such as the rise of feminism and the “PC agenda.” Phoenix himself was recently asked by The Telegraph‘s film correspondent Robbie Collins whether he thought his performance might inadvertently inspire mass violence from individuals who identify with the character: he declined to answer the question, and ended the interview.
