Todd Phillips, the director of Joker: Folie à Deux has shared an exclusive look at Lady Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix in the film. Phillips captioned the screen grab from the film “Happy Valentines Day” on Instagram, where Gaga also shared the image. The image depicts Gaga as Harley Quinn, looking intently at Phoneix’s Joker. She cups his face as the pair are clearly in a heavy scene. The Joker is complete with his usual clown-like makeup and green hair. The image doesn’t give much indication of the setting of the scene, but it looks dark and seems to have concrete walls– possibly a basement, based on the location of the window.
According to reports, Gaga is playing the newest version of the iconic character from DC Comics, Harley Quinn. Harley Quinn is a psychiatrist who, while working with the Joker, finds herself falling for him. She abandons the normalcy of her life and profession to corroborate with the Joker on his journey as the villain to Batman. Margot Robbie also played Harley Quinn in the Suicide Squad films. Kaley Cuoco also voiced the character in HBO Max’s animated series Harley Quinn. Gaga confirmed she would be taking the reigns of the character in the Joker sequel last August. The sequel will be a musical.
Lady Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix
In 2019, the original Joker, a film also by Phillips, was met with critical and commercial acclaim. It was the highest-grossing R-rated film in history. It won many awards, including the Golden Lion at the Venice Film festival. The film was also one of the top nominated films at last year’s Academy Awards, receiving 11 nominations. These nominations included best picture, best director, best-adapted screenplay, and more. Joaquin Phoenix won the academy award for best performance by an actor in a leading role. Additionally, Hildur Guðnadóttir won for best achievement in music written for motion pictures (original score).
Joker‘s dramatic success created conversations about sequels almost instantly. DC media’s landscape has shifted drastically since the film’s original release 4 years ago. However, Philips’ Joker has been mostly untouched by DC Studios, which was formed recently. Its co-chiefs, James Gunn and Peter Safran, seem to know not to mess with what isn’t broken. The sequel to Joker, starring Phonix and Gaga, will not be playing a role in the narrative or continuity of other DC films that are being released. Joker: Folie à Deux will in theaters October 9, 2024– the five year anniversary of the first film’s release.
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