Joker: Folie à Deux is set to sing and dance its way onto movie screens this October, but director Todd Phillips is seemingly done with comic book movies for now, meaning the chances of us getting a Joker 3 from him are slim to none. Set two years after 2019’s Joker, Joaquin Phoenix returns as Arthur Fleck in Phillips’ latest, which sees him team up with Lady Gaga’s Harley Quinn, as the duo look to influence Joker’s followers to free him from Arkham State Hospital.
In a new piece courtesy of Variety, Phillips spoke about all things Joker: Folie à Deux, including whether fans can expect a third entry in the series. Unfortunately, Phillips pointed out that while it was fun for a while, he’s seemingly done with the franchise. Check out his comments below.
It was fun to play in this sort of sandbox for two movies, but I think we’ve said what we wanted to say in this world.
Of course, while Phillips may be done with the series, that doesn’t necessarily mean that the franchise will come to an abrupt halt. Should Joker: Folie à Deux prove to be successful at the box office, Warner Bros. Pictures could easily tap a new director to helm another entry, and bring a fresh new take to Arthur Fleck. However, with Phillips and Phoenix having worked so closely with one another to bring Joker’s story to life, it’s highly unlikely that the star would return to portray the character without the director on board. That would mean producers searching for someone else who would bring as much as Phoenix did to the role, and in all honesty, audiences probably wouldn’t be very receptive to that idea.
Joker 2 Was Originally Conceived as a Broadway Production
With the release of the trailer for Joker: Folie à Deux, by now everyone knows that it leans heavily on the musical side of things. With Gaga on board, how can it not? However, the theatrical release that’s set to hit theaters on October 4 wasn’t the first idea for the project. As it turns out, Phillips and Phoenix were mulling over a Broadway sequel, but all that fell by the wayside thanks to COVID.
“When we started really thinking about it, we realized it takes four years to put something like that together. And is Joaquin really going to give six months of his life to do that every night onstage? Then we thought about doing it at the Carlyle as sort of a smaller thing. But COVID hit.”
That being said, the idea of doing Joker as a musical held firm. “Why do something if it doesn’t scare the sh*t out of you?” Phillips asked. Joker: Folie à Deux seems to be scaring a lot of people right now, as the idea of a musical isn’t what a lot of us had in mind for a sequel, but for the director, it’s a risk he was willing to take. “I’m addicted to risk. I mean, it keeps you up at night. It makes your hair fall out. But it’s the sweat that keeps you going.”
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Despite the Oscar and Grammy award-winning Lady Gaga’s accolades, she knew starring in Joker: Folie à Deux would be a singular experience.
Will all that singing and dancing pay off this October when Joker: Folie à Deux hits theaters? That remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure: it’s certain to be an epic conclusion that will close the book on Phillips’ part in the saga… for now.
Joker: Folie à Deux
will make its world premiere at the 81st Venice International Film Festival on September 4, and open in theaters nationwide a month later on October 4.