When it was first revealed that Jared Leto’s Joker would be making a surprise return to the DCEU after joining Zack Snyder’s Justice League, a lot of people were expecting Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn to follow suit. After all, the duo shared the screen with Ben Affleck’s Batman in Suicide Squad, and with Justice League technically taking place before Birds of Prey in canon, the lovebirds would still be an item.
However, despite initially claiming that the Wolf of Wall Street star would be returning for the reshoots, insider Daniel Richtman has followed that up by saying that Robbie will no longer be involved after a deal couldn’t be agreed upon. Reports have indicated that the Joker’s scenes may be flashbacks to him murdering Robin and burning Wayne Manor to the ground, so in reality, you probably don’t need Harley Quinn to have those moments connect to the rest of Justice League.
Of course, it could always be something as simple as a scheduling issue, too, with James Gunn’s The Suicide Squad still in the midst of post-production. That would present a logistical headache if the movie’s leading lady was forced to jet off to the set of Justice League and then return to the DCEU’s soft reboot for additional filming, especially given the COVID-19 safety protocols in place on every major production.
In any case, Zack Snyder’s Justice League is already set to run for at least four hours, so there’s clearly more than enough of a story to tell and enough footage to tell it with, whether Harley Quinn shows up or not. The focus should really be on Leto’s Joker anyway, with the actor surely going out of his way to win the fans over after his divisive performance the first time around.
