(Photo by Warner Bros.)

Another movie based on a DC Comics property was announced this week, and it caught a lot of people by surprise: Batman villain the Joker will be the focus of an origin story set in the early 1980s. Martin Scorsese is producing, Todd Phillips is directing, and a new actor will portray the young evildoer.

Throughout the history of DC Comics adaptations, the Joker has been a favorite element, not just in Batman movies, including The Dark Knight and the animated Batman: The Killing Joke, but also the bad-guy bonanza Suicide Squad. And critics tend to agree with the fans for the most part.

Average Tomatometer score for Batman-based movies featuring the Joker: 78.2%

Average Tomatometer score for Batman-based movies without the Joker: 69.1%

Yet there were uniformly negative reactions to the news of the new Joker movie, which probably won’t feature Batman. Here’s what the critics are saying:

Of all the characters who should NOT have an origin story, like, EVER.

– Helen O’Hara, Empire

I can not wait for the Joker origin, because everyone’s childhood is so f—ing interesting.

– Mike Ryan, Uproxx

The best way to combat hate is by drowning it out. So let’s all get out there and make movies that AREN’T Joker origin stories.

– Eric D. Snider, EricDSnider.com

I hope the Joker movie is so gritty that it feels like having 400 pounds of gravel shot into my eyes with a firehose.

– Scott Wampler, Birth.Movies.Death

Honestly? It feels extremely ill-advised, at least while the current iteration of the DCEU is going…it makes little sense and could lead to a lot of confusion among non-hardcore fans.

– Rodrigo Perez, The Playlist

They need to give the Joker a rest..just like Green Goblin over in the Spider-verse.

– Edward Douglas, The Tracking Board

Is Todd Phillips perfect for this or terrible for this, I can’t tell I don’t know anything anymore.

– Alison Willmore, Buzzfeed

That ‘Joker origin movie produced by Martin Scorsese’ story feels like the end of all things.

– Scott Mendelson, Forbes

I’m a busy man, so I’m just going to get my gigantic eye roll out of the way now for when “Sympathy for the Devil” plays in the Joker movie.

– Matt Goldberg, Collider