Joker: Folie Deux – Teaser, Date of Release

The Clown Prince of Crime’s origin tale was presented in Joker, a stand-alone film that became so popular that it got a sequel, Joker: Folie à Deux. Joaquin Phoenix plays hired clown Arthur Fleck, who aspires to be a renowned stand-up comedian in the 2019 film. As a result of his ongoing bullying and unfair treatment in Gotham’s economic system, Arthur embarks on a violent journey that, by the time the Joker movie ends, has turned him into the Clown Prince of Crime and inspired a whole movement.

Joker was a great award winner despite being a contentious film due to its controversial examination of mental health. Hildur Guðnadóttir took home the Best Original Score Oscar, while Phoenix took home the Best Actor Oscar. This is in addition to the film’s $1 billion global box office haul (according to Box Office Mojo) on a mere $55 million budget. It appears Warner Bros. may easily duplicate that success given the star-studded ensemble of Joker: Folie à Deux and some other interesting details that have been revealed about the film along the road.

On April 9, 2024, a trailer for The Joker 2 was unveiled, after a teaser the previous week. The teaser revealed more about the film’s appearance and gave viewers their first real glimpse of Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker and Lady Gaga’s Harley Quinn together, even though several plot points are still amusingly unclear.

According to the teaser for The Joker: Folie à Deux, a significant chunk of the follow-up movie will take place in Arkham, continuing from the conclusion of the first one. While in incarceration, the trailer depicts Arthur Fleck encountering Gaga’s Harley Quinn. However, it noticeably changes this portion of their comic origin tale by having Quinn be a patient in the facility rather than the Joker’s therapist, as is customary in their backstory.

But the trailer also seems to imply that the two manage to get away, since the scene where Fleck is being pursued by two more guys dressed like the Joker takes place in Gotham City. Having said that, it also seems that the musical portions of the movie would depict a disconnection from reality, thus anything can really happen in Joker 2’s actual plot.

Date of Joker 2’s Release

When Joker 2 opens in theatres during the 2024 Oscar season, it will have been five years since the original film was released. Joker 2 is scheduled for release on October 4, 2024. Given how highly regarded the first film was, it is not unexpected that Warner Bros. chose that day for the release of the sequel. The film’s quality will benefit from the release date, which indicates that the studio is confident in the sequel and thinks it will be a huge winner in the 2024–2025 Oscar ceremonies.

The script was finished by writer/director Todd Phillips in 2022, and the film’s development and production were expedited. Joker: Given that Folie à Deux’s production costs are reportedly a whopping $150 million, the film is supposedly over twice as budgeted as Joker.

Joker 2 Ensemble

Phoenix is the Joker’s leader, therefore the sequel would certainly fall flat without him. Not only will Phoenix reprising his role as the Clown Prince of Crime, but Zazie Beetz, who played Sophie Drummond in the first film, will also be making a comeback (via Deadline).

Though it was later revealed that their romance was solely in Arthur’s imagination and that Sophie was only his neighbour in real life, Sophie was initially shown as having some romantic interest in him. Although it was unclear whether Sophie made it out of Joker, a deleted scene shows that she did, indicating that her appearances in the follow-up won’t merely be flashbacks.

A fresh and intriguing ensemble of supporting players joins Phoenix and Beetz. Lady Gaga will portray Harley Quinn in the film, the Joker’s romantic partner at Arkham Asylum. Lady Gaga plays a significant part in the sequel, even though it’s unclear how closely it will adhere to the original story.

Brendan Gleeson (In Bruges, The Banshees of Inisherin) is the other notable actor joining the cast, albeit his role is still unknown. Numerous additional performers have also been cast in parts that have not yet been revealed. According to Deadline, the cast now includes Harry Lawtey (The Pale Blue Eye), Catherine Keener (Being John Malkovich), and Jacob Lofland (The Son).

Joker 2 Plot Details

It’s unclear if Joker: Folie à Deux occurs minutes or years after Joker’s last scene, in which Arthur kills the Arkham Asylum staffer. Considering that the first film concludes with Arthur fleeing from Arkham Asylum guards after he kills a doctor, it is evident from certain Joker: Folie à Deux narrative points that Arthur was unable to escape.

In a similar vein, he doesn’t appear to have aged in the trailer or preview shots, suggesting the movie probably doesn’t jump in time. In any event, it has been made clear that a large portion of the follow-up takes place in Arkham, and the Joker 2 trailer confirms this.

Given that the Joker sequel will be a musical, Joker: Folie à Deux’s abrupt tone shift has garnered the most attention. In light of the fact that Lady Gaga is not just a phenomenal performer but has developed into an excellent actor, it makes particular sense that she was chosen to play Harley Quinn.

In the end, Phillips’ ability to pull off the musical component—always a risky decision—relies on Gaga. The musical components will probably exist in Arthur’s thoughts, just as his relationship with Sophie did in the first film, since the most of the film will take place in Arkham. Considering that the subtitle of the film translates to “madness for two,” which is a form of shared delusional condition, that may be especially the case.

Even if Joker 2’s musical strategy is controversial, it might be a pleasant break from the dark and melancholy tone of the first film, and it might be a brilliant and original manner of accomplishing so. Furthermore, the Joker has always been mostly dramatic and musical, so this drastic change is kind of in line with the legendary figure. A lot of options and possibilities are also presented by the Arkham location, since it may introduce other villains to Batman’s roster of rogues.