The continuation of the film "Joker" directed by Todd Phillips will be filmed in the musical genre, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Thus, the sequel will be significantly different from the original: the 2019 crime drama about a dark and gloomy character was a cross between "Taxi Driver" and Martin Scorsese's "King of Comedy".

Earlier, the director posted on his Instagram* page a photo of the cover of the script with the working title Joker: Folie à Deux (“Joker: Madness for Two”).

This term refers to a mental disorder shared by two or more people, usually members of the same family.

Based on the title, some Phillips subscribers suggested that Harley Quinn, a supervillain and assistant to the Joker, would appear in the film.

The guesses turned out to be correct, Quinn will indeed be involved in the script.

In this case, the plot will unfold in a different universe where the supervillain performed by Margot Robbie lives (the actress played her in the films of the Suicide Squad series, as well as the film Birds of Prey: The Amazing Story of Harley Quinn).

Lady Gaga, who previously starred in A Star Is Born and House of Gucci, is being considered for the role of Quinn in Todd Phillips' film.

Joaquin Phoenix is ​​expected to return to the role of the Joker in the second part - a photo of the artist reading the script was also published by Todd Phillips.

However, according to The Hollywood Reporter, the participation of the actor is not yet a fact, since Warner Bros.

until I made a deal with him.

Details about what place Harley Quinn will take in the upcoming project have not been disclosed.

According to DC comics, the heroine was the Joker's psychiatrist, and later fell in love with him and became an associate.

The script of the film was written by Todd Phillips himself in collaboration with Scott Silver - previously the filmmakers worked together on the first part of the story.

The director noted that his new picture will have a certain “thematic resonance”.

Prior to the Joker sequel, Todd Phillips did not direct musicals.

Among his most high-profile projects are the tapes of the Hangover series.

The director also shot the popular comedies "Back-to-back" and "Guys with guns."

However, as a producer, the cinematographer had a hand in the creation of the 2018 film A Star Is Born, which received eight Oscar nominations.

  • Shot from the movie "Joker"

  • © kinopoisk.ru

The action of the first "Joker" by Todd Phillips takes place in the early 1980s in Gotham City.

The tape is a "character study" of Arthur Fleck, a mentally unstable loner whose health begins to decline after Gotham cuts funding for social services.

As a result, the hero has to give up psychotherapy sessions and medicines that have become unavailable.

Gradually, Arthur Fleck turns into the Joker.

Initially, the picture was not considered commercially promising, so $ 60 million was allocated for its production - a small amount compared to the budgets of many other Hollywood films based on comics.

At the same time, the project became a box office hit, collecting more than $1.074 billion worldwide.

In addition, "Joker" made a splash at the Venice Film Festival and received its main prize - the "Golden Lion".

First of all, critics were pleased with the performance of Joaquin Phoenix: in their opinion, "there is not a single false note in his portrayal of the merciless nature of Arthur's despair."

The film later received 11 Oscar nominations, including in the main categories - Best Picture, Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.

The authors of the tape got two statuettes - for the best script and the male role.

Joaquin Phoenix has also won Screen Actors Guild, Golden Globe and BAFTA awards.

However, not all viewers were delighted with the picture.

The original Joker has an 88% rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on reviews from a wide audience, but experts rated it less unequivocally, awarding 68% freshness.

Among the claims of film critics - a large number of explicit references to classic films, the lack of a clear structure in the plot and the abundance of scenes of violence: according to some reviewers, they can provoke viewers to such actions.

Despite its success, the film was nominated for a Golden Raspberry anti-award for its "disregard for human life and public property."

* Meta product, activity recognized as extremist, banned in Russia by decision of the Tverskoy Court of Moscow dated 03/21/2022.