'Joker' Director Reveals New Details About 'Folie à Deux'

In a new interview with Variety, “Joker: Folie à Deux” director Todd Phillips revealed some new information about the upcoming film starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga. 

Phoenix stars as Arthur Fleck, the man behind the Joker alter ego, and Gaga stars as Harleen “Lee” Quinzel, a patient in the mental hospital Arthur is held at the start of the movie. 

Phillips said the goal of the movie is to make it feel like it was “made by crazy people,” which is evident from what little information is available. 

He details how the movie begins: It kicks off with a “Looney Tunes”-inspired cartoon before showing “prison riots, courtroom faceoffs and a variety-show sequence” that starts with Phoenix and Gaga as a homicidal Sonny & Cher. 

In terms of the characterization of Harley Quinn, Phillips said he wanted her to be manipulative and amoral, but also more grounded. 

“The high voice, that accent, the gum-chewing and all that sort of sassy stuff that’s in the comics, we stripped that away,” Phillips says. “We wanted her to fit into this world of Gotham that we created from the first movie.”

Gaga spoke to Variety about Phillip’s ambition to outdo 2019’s “Joker.” 

“Todd took a very big swing with this whole concept and with the script, giving the sequel to ‘Joker’ this audacity and complexity,” Gaga said. “There’s music, there’s dance, it’s a drama, it’s also a courtroom drama, it’s a comedy, it’s happy, it’s sad. It’s a testament to [Todd] as a director, that he would rather be creative than just tell a traditional story of love.”

Because they sang live as opposed to using a pre-recorded track, Phillips said he wanted Gaga and Phoenix to capture a rawer, more unstable sound than they’re used to performing, in an attempt to strike a balance between euphoria and despair. 

“In this film, Phoenix and Gaga did everything live, accompanied by a piano player who performed off-camera, trying to keep up with whatever tempo they established. In the editing room, Phillips then tried to sync the radically different takes into a coherent whole, something… pic.twitter.com/34hx7KH6cV

— Lady Gaga Now 🃏 (@ladygaganownet) August 20, 2024

“We asked ourselves what would need to be true for two people to just break into song in the middle of a conversation?” Gaga said. “Where does the music come from when no one can hear it but the characters? Neither Arthur nor Lee are professional singers, and they shouldn’t sound like they are.”

So far, there are three confirmed songs that Phoenix and Gaga perform in the film: “Get Happy” by Judy Garland, “For Once In My Life” by Stevie Wonder and “That’s Life” by Frank Sinatra. It has not been officially confirmed if Gaga contributes original music to the film’s soundtrack. 

While the film makes use of music, Phillips said he’s reluctant to call it a musical because, “Most of the music in the movie is really just dialogue.”  

“Joker: Folie à Deux" will premiere in theaters on Oct. 4, 2024. 

Stay up-to-date with Lady Gaga Now for updates on “Joker: Folie à Deux.”