Last week, Todd Phillips surprised us all with an Instagram post that seemingly confirmed a sequel to Joker was in the works. Phillips not only shared the title page of the script, but also a photo of Joaquin Phoenix reading it. That post didn’t tell us much about Joker 2, but a new report suggests the sequel will be a musical co-starring Lady Gaga.
Joker 2 reportedly adding Lady Gaga to the cast
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Todd Phillips and Scott Silver have been working on a script for Joker 2 for quite a while, but have just recently shown it to the studio. Meanwhile, although the Instagram post suggested that Phoenix was already on board, THR says that the actor and Warner Bros. are still working out a deal.
That is some interesting context for the vague announcement from Phillips last week. But THR also had a few other bombshells in its exclusive report.
In addition to Joaquin Phoenix, Warner Bros. is also in talks with Lady Gaga. Phillips wants the singer, songwriter, and actress to play Harley Quinn in the sequel. In the comics, Harley Quinn started as a psychiatrist interning at Arkham Asylum in Gotham City. She then fell in love with the Joker and devolved into the villain we know today.
Lady Gaga’s Harley Quinn will be unconnected to Margot Robbie’s character in the Warner Bros. DCEU movies. We last saw Robbie’s Quinn in 2021’s The Suicide Squad, which left the door wide open for more adventures in DC’s cinematic universe for Robbie.
And it’s a musical?
But that’s not all. Sources also told The Hollywood Reporter that Joker 2 (or Joker: Folie à Deux) will be a musical. Devastatingly, that’s all the information that the report provides. That said, we assume Lady Gaga will be heavily involved in the singing.
How exactly Phillips plans to pull off an R-rated comic book musical remains to be seen, but considering the success of Joker, the writer-director probably has carte blanche to do whatever he wants. Joker raked in over $1 billion globally on a $60 million budget. As The Hollywood Reporter points out, it is the fourth highest-grossing R-rated movie ever.
You can stream Joker right now on HBO Max.
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