Joker 2 Reportedly Includes “Complicated Musical Sequences” Compared to A Star Is Born

News that the upcoming Joker sequel, titled Joker: Folie à Deux, being a musical arrived a few weeks ago, and frankly some fans still don’t know what to make of it. The film already has a release date penciled in and star Joaquin Phoenix and director Todd Phillips are attached to return, with none other than Lady Gaga set to star as well. A new report from Variety sheds a bit of light on the musical aspect of the film, revealing that the movie will reportedly have “complicated musical sequences,” which will raise the budget of the movie to around $150 million (also accounting for big pay days for the talent).

According to the trade, yes, Joker 2 will be a musical, but they not that it’s status as a musical movie is more similar in nature to A Star is Born (a film that happens to feature some musical performances, which ironically also starred Lady Gaga) than a film like In the Heights (a traditional Broadway musical). Variety notes that Joaquin Phoenix, who won the Academy Award for the first movie back in 2019, will be getting a $20 million pay check for appearing in the film with Phillips earning a similar fee. Gaga will reportedly bring in $10 million for her part in the film.

It hasn’t been officially confirmed that Gaga’s part in the film will be that of DC Comics favorite Harley Quinn, but it has been reported that the film will largely be set inside Gotham City’s Arkham Asylum. That coupled with the film’s subtitle, Folie à deux which refers to the medical condition where two or more people start sharing delusions, has led many to believe Harley Quinn would be involved in the sequel.

“When a movie does $1 billion and cost $60 million to make, of course it comes up,” Phillips explained with a laugh in a 2020 interview about a sequel. “But Joaquin and I haven’t really decided on it. We’re open. I mean, I’d love to work with him on anything, quite frankly. So who knows? But it would have to have a real thematic resonance the way this one did, ultimately being about childhood trauma and the lack of love, and the loss of empathy. All those things are really what made this movie work for us, so we’d have to have something that had an equal thematic resonance.”   

Joker: Folie A Deux will be released on October 4, 2024, arriving exactly five years after the original film.