After becoming the highest-grossing R-rated movie of all-time, before going on to become a serious heavy hitter during awards season, there was always an air of inevitability surrounding a Joker sequel, even if Todd Phillips and Joaquin Phoenix danced around the speculation every time it was brought up.
To that end, nobody was particularly taken aback when the filmmaker revealed that he’d written a screenplay for a second chapter titled Joker: Folie à Deux, but the same can’t be said about the next major reveal. Lady Gaga playing Harley Quinn in an R-rated psychological comic book musical thriller revolving around the Clown Prince of Crime sounds completely and totally insane, even if it hasn’t done much to dispel those ongoing comparisons between Phillips’ ambitions and the filmography of Martin Scorsese.
It certainly took everyone by surprise, but a new fan theory making the rounds on Reddit has offered a fascinating explanation as to how Joker 2 could turn itself into an all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza without comprising the aesthetic established in the first film.
Gaga being introduced as Dr. Harleen Quinzell, with her transformation into the Joker’s accomplice and the accompanying musical numbers taking place entirely within Arthur Fleck’s head, makes more sense the longer you think about it. It’s effectively the same as the subplot revolving around Zazie Beetz’s “love interest” Sophie Dumond in the opening installment, albeit with a twist perfectly in keeping with the world Phillips and Phoenix created the first time around, which would then allow Folie à Deux to take things in even stranger directions.
