Todd Phillips' Joker 2 (aka Folie à Deux), starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga, is a musical. However, a different idea has surfaced that would have brought the Joker to space.
During an interview with Empire, Phillips and Phoenix revealed the origins of the sequel. They discussed some of their earliest conversations with one another.
“Joaquin and I talked about another one the whole time while we were making the first movie, just because we love the character,” Phillips said. “We were obsessed with Arthur. We would almost joke about it: ‘Oh, we should take Arthur and we should do this.'”
The ideas started tame but would get crazier. One of the craziest ideas was to place the Joker in space.
“I had a curiosity about going further with the character,” a laughing Joaquin Phoenix added. “It felt like you could put him into almost any situation, and I would be interested to see how he would navigate it. I mocked up all of these posters of films that have already been made, like Rosemary's Baby and [The] Godfather, and I put Joker in them and I gave them to Todd.
“There was a running joke of, ‘What about Joker in space?'” Phoenix continued. “But yeah, I was fascinated by where he would end up.”
Early in his career, Todd Phillips gained notoriety for directing Road Trip and the Hangover trilogy. His other notable credits include Due Date and War Dogs.
What is Joker 2 about?
Joker 2 is the sequel to the highly successful 2019 movie. The first Joker received 11 nominations at the Oscars, winning Best Actor and Best Original Score, and made over $1 billion at the box office.
It follows a failing clown, Arthur Fleck (Joaquin Phoenix), who is slowly driven to insanity. Gotham City's countercultural revolution happening in the backdrop. Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, and Frances Conroy also starred in it.
Phillips directed Joker and co-wrote the script with Scott Silver. He also served as a producer alongside Bradley Cooper and Emma Tillinger Koskoff. After premiering at the 2019 Venice International Film Festival, Warner Bros released it on October 4, 2019.
The R-rated standalone DC movie ended up grossing over $1 billion at the box office. A sequel, Folie à Deux, will come in 2024, with most of the principal names returning.
Folie à Deux will pick up a few years after the events of Joker. Arthur is now a patient at Arkham State Hospital and sparks a romance with his music therapist, Harleen “Lee” Quinzel (Lady Gaga), better known as Harley Quinn. Catherine Keener, Harry Lawtey, Steve Coogan, and a returning Beetz will also star in it.
Like its predecessor, Folie à Deux will premiere at the Venice International Film Festival and will compete for the Golden Lion. Warner Bros will release the film on October 4, 2024, exactly five years after the first one.
Other portrayals of the character
The Joker is a DC character familiar with the silver screen. Cesar Romero was one of the first portrayals of the iconic villain. Heath Ledger also notably won an Oscar (posthumously) for his portrayal of the character in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight.
More recently, Jared Leto and Barry Keoghan have played the character in Suicide Squad and The Batman, respectively. Star Wars icon Mark Hamill has also voiced the part for years in animated form.
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