Joker 2's Teaser Trailer Is Already Destroying Your Musical Doubts
A short teaser trailer released for Joker: Folie à Deux is already proving viewers' doubts about a musical sequel wrong. After 2019's Joker was a smash-hit, audiences were waiting for the confirmation of a sequel which was finally announced in May 2021. Along with rumors of Lady Gaga's casting in Folie à Deux came speculation of a genre change from the original's dark psychological thriller to a movie musical, causing many to question what direction the Clown Prince of Crime's next stint on screen would take.
Joker already introduced a musical element with Arthur Fleck's much-mimicked staircase dance, but a shift in genre is another thing entirely. Considering Fleck's descent into darkness alongside the rise of a violent revolution in Gotham City, it's very possible the musical shift will be a reflection of his mental state. The question now is how it will work and what the sequel can build on that Joker already laid out.
The first Joker: Folie à Deux teaser trailer released by Lady Gaga on 4 August 2022 confirmed her involvement along with a release date for the film of 4 October 2024. The teaser, although less than 20-seconds long, shows silhouettes of both Phoenix and Gaga dancing in the style demonstrated by Phoenix in Joker, set to the tune of Cheek to Cheek, written for Fred Astaire for Top Hat, but notably recorded by Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett for their collaborative album. There has been doubt that a musical tone to Folie à Deux will fit the story, especially since Joker thrived on the dark grittiness that goes hand-in-hand with the character, but it seems this teaser trailer has proven those doubts wrong.
While the movie musical tone of Joker: Folie à Deux could be divisive among audiences, fitting the new genre into the twisted textures of Joker's world lends itself to some fun new storytelling techniques. Arthur Fleck's journey into instability in Joker is demonstrated through his unreliable narration and invented storylines that turn out to not be true, such as his creation of a relationship with neighbor Sophie (Zazie Beetz). This distortion of reality is a theme that will surely continue on into Folie à Deux and create opportunities for Todd Phillips to inject music and song into the story naturally without taking away from the unsettling nature of the original.
While there has been no official confirmation of Lady Gaga's character in Joker: Folie à Deux, it's been heavily speculated that she'll be portraying Harley Quinn, the Joker's infamous partner in crime and love interest. This is reinforced by the reveal that the majority of Folie à Deux's action will take place inside the confines of Arkham Asylum since Harley Quinn originally started as Joker's psychiatrist in the Asylum, then known as Dr. Harleen Quinzel, before being corrupted by a relationship with the Joker. This storyline would be interesting to explore in Folie à Deux, especially with the inclusion of sinister musical numbers involving the pair since we've already seen Arthur Fleck's expressive dance moves and Lady Gaga's musical talent is second-to-none. Phillips seems to know what he's doing with this new film series, so Joker: Folie à Deux will surely mirror Joker's impactful legacy.
Source: Screenrant
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