Lady Gaga will play Harley Quinn in the sequel to the multi-award winning Joker, who will have to see Joaquin Phoenix return to his lead role.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, Gaga is on the verge of taking on the role of Quinn, Arkham Asylum’s former psychiatrist who has appeared regularly in Batman-related stories as a Joker companion and love interest. Margot Robbie played the character in a high-profile outing in the 2016 film Suicide Squad, as well as in her 2021 sequel The Suicide Squad. Robbie’s character version was also the central figure in the 2020 superhero film Birds of Prey.
No details of the film’s plot have been revealed, but the reporter says that Joker’s Quinn 2 “will exist in a DC universe other than … Robbie’s Harley Quinn”, presumably reflecting the first Joker’s distant relationship with previous iterations of the character. Director and co-writer Todd Phillips posted a cover of the script on social media on Wednesday, suggesting that the film’s subtitle is “Folie à Deux,” a reference to a psychiatric syndrome in which two people share a delusional state, which could refer to Quinn’s Place in the film’s narrative.
The reporter also claims that Joker 2 will be “a musical”, although he does not provide further details.
In the same post on social media, Phillips also revealed a photograph of Phoenix reading the script, although reports say Phoenix has not yet committed to the project. The reporter says his sources say that “Warners has yet to close a deal with the actor, with both parties involved,” but it is inconceivable that the project would go ahead without his involvement.
Lady Gaga’s transition to film acting has been exceptionally successful to date, having received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for A Star Is Born, and Bafta and Golden Globe nominations for Best Actress for House of Gucci.