| Joy | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | David O. Russell |
| Screenplay by | David O. Russell |
| Story by |
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| Produced by |
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| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Linus Sandgren |
| Edited by | |
| Music by | |
Production companies | |
| Distributed by | 20th Century Fox |
Release dates |
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Running time | 124 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $60 million[2] |
| Box office | $101.1 million[3] |
Joy is a 2015 Americanbiographicalcomedy-drama film written and directed byDavid O. Russell and starringJennifer Lawrence asJoy Mangano, a self-made millionaire who created her own business empire.
Joy received a theatrical release on December 25, 2015, by20th Century Fox. The film grossed $101 million worldwide, and received mixed reviews from critics, with praise for Lawrence's performance, but criticism for the writing and pacing of the film.
Joy earned Lawrence theGolden Globe Award for Best Actress – Motion Picture Comedy or Musical, in addition to nominations for theCritics' Choice Movie Award for Best Actress and theAcademy Award for Best Actress, with the latter making the 25-year-old the youngest person in history to receive fourAcademy Award nominations.[4] The film also received a nomination for theGolden Globe Award for Best Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy.
In 1990,Joy Mangano, an airline booking agent residing inPeconic,New York, struggles financially while juggling a complicated family life. Living with Joy are her two children and her single mother Terri, who spends all day in bed watchingsoap operas, her maternal grandmother Mimi, and her under-employed ex-husband Tony, a wannabe singer who sleeps in the basement.
Joy'soverachieving paternal half-sister Peggy constantly humiliates her in front of her children for her failed marriage. Joy's father Rudy further complicates matters when he also moves into the basement after his third divorce.
Mimi and Joy's best friend Jackie encourage Joy to pursue her inventing ambitions. Frustrated when using a conventional mop, she designs and builds an innovativeself-wringing type. Trudy, a wealthy Italian widow Rudy is dating, agrees to invest in Joy's product. They contract aCalifornia company to manufacture the mop's parts at a low price.
To avoid a potential patent lawsuit, the company advises Joy to pay $50,000 in royalties to a man inHong Kong who has a similar product. When the manufacturer repeatedly bills Joy to remake their faulty parts, she refuses to pay.
Joy meetsQVC executive Neil Walker, who agrees to sell her mops on TV. To manufacture 50,000 additional units, she takes out a second home mortgage. When the first TV attempt fails after the celebrity pitchman improperly demonstrates the product, Joy demands she be allowed to do a second infomercial. The mop sells out, earning thousands of dollars; her success is soon tempered by Mimi's sudden death.
Joy's fledgling business is financially jeopardized after Peggy pays the manufacturer's excessive overcharges without Joy's approval. The manufacturer refuses to refund the money, and a contract loophole allows them to fraudulently patent Joy's mop design as their own.
Shortly after filing forbankruptcy, Joy discovers there never was a similar product in Hong Kong, and the manufacturer has defrauded her. She confronts owner Derek Markham, forcing him to refund the overcharges, pay damages, and relinquish any claim to her patent or else face criminal charges.
Joy becomes a successful independent businesswoman who sponsors other inventors. Jackie and Tony are her most valued advisers. Joy supports her aging father, despite his and Peggy's unsuccessful lawsuit for ownership of her company. Only Terri is independent, having found stability with Toussaint, aHaitian plumber Joy once hired. As Neil predicted, he and Joy became "adversaries in commerce" with her move toHSN, but they remain personal friends.
In January 2014, it was announced thatDavid O. Russell's upcoming project would entail rewriting and directing a drama film about American inventor and entrepreneurJoy Mangano, a strugglingLong Island single mom of three children.[5] Russell setJennifer Lawrence to play the lead role in the film, whichJohn Davis and John Fox produced forDavis Entertainment, along withKen Mok, with20th Century Fox holding the distribution rights.[5] In early November 2014, Russell said it was "a great opportunity to do something neither Jennifer nor I have done [before]". He also stated that he would like to castRobert De Niro and create a role forBradley Cooper to star in the film.[18] On November 11, it was reported that De Niro was in final talks to re-team with Russell and Lawrence in the film, to play Mangano's father.[19] They worked together in the 2012 filmSilver Linings Playbook, and then De Niro made a cameo in 2013'sAmerican Hustle.[7] Russell rewrote the script byAnnie Mumolo.[7] On November 17, De Niro confirmed his casting, saying "Yes I am going to do something with them. I am going to play a father."[7] In early December 2014, Cooper was officially set to star along with Lawrence, playing an executive atQVC who helps Joy by giving the Miracle Mop a boost.[8] On December 8,Édgar Ramírez was cast as Tony Miranda, Joy's now ex-husband.[9] Additional cast members, includingIsabella Rossellini,Diane Ladd, andVirginia Madsen in unspecified roles, were revealed on February 17, 2015.[10]Isabella Crovetti-Cramp played young Joy.[6] In February, anotherworking title was revealed, which wasKay's Baptism.[20]Elisabeth Röhm's casting as Peggy, sister of Joy Mangano, was revealed on February 27, 2015.[13]
Principal photography began in February 2015, after De Niro completed the shooting ofDirty Grandpa.[7] Filming was originally set to begin on February 9, 2015, inBoston,Massachusetts, making this Russell's third film shot in the area.[21][22] Due to snow in the city, filming was rescheduled to begin on February 19, on Federal Street inWilmington, Massachusetts, lasting through February 26,[23][24] butprincipal photography on the film began in Boston on February 16, 2015.[10][25][26]
In Wilmington, filming lasted until February 26, 2015.[27] On February 27, 2015, Lawrence made aFacebook post denying the rumors about her clashes with Russell on the set of the film, saying, "David O. Russell is one of my closest friends and we have an amazing collaborative working relationship. I adore this man and he does not deserve this tabloid malarkey. This movie is going great and I'm having a blast making it!"[28] After wrapping up in Wilmington, the production moved toNorth Reading, where shooting took place March 2–4, 2015[20] and on March 11 and 12.[29]
The film had its world premiere inNew York City on December 13. It was released to theaters in the United States on December 25, 2015.[30]
Joy was released onDVD,Blu-ray, andUltra HD Blu-ray on May 3, 2016, by20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.
In 2022, a stage musical of the same name titledJoy premiered at theGeorge Street Playhouse inNew Brunswick,New Jersey, starringErika Henningsen in the title role. Mangano had sold the stage rights to theatrical producerKen Davenport, and she attended the premiere performance on December 16, 2022.[31][32]
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Joy grossed $56.4 million in the U.S. and Canada and $44.7 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $101.1 million against a budget of $60 million.[3]
In the United States and Canada, the film opened on December 25, 2015, alongsidePoint Break,Daddy's Home, andConcussion, as well as the wide release ofThe Big Short. In its opening weekend, it was projected to gross $13–15 million from 2,896 theaters.[33] It ended up grossing $17 million, finishing third at the box office behindStar Wars: The Force Awakens ($149.2 million) andDaddy's Home ($38.7 million).[34]
Joy received mixed reviews from critics.[35] On thereview aggregator websiteRotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 60%, based on 273 reviews, with anaverage rating of 6.3/10. The site's consensus reads, "Joy is anchored by a strong performance from Jennifer Lawrence, although director David O. Russell's uncertain approach to its fascinating fact-based tale only sporadically sparks bursts of the titular emotion."[36] OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 56 out of 100, based on 48 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[37] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B+" on an A+ to F scale.[34]
