The budget for "Joker 2" tripled compared to the first: to attract its talents and to conquer its audience, Warner Bros. is betting big on the sequel to the film which won Joaquin Phoenix an Oscar.
In 2019, Joker by Todd Phillips was unanimous, bringing in no less than $1.07 billion at the global box office and 11 Oscar nominations - including two victories, one for Joaquin Phoenix, crowned best actor, and the Another for Hildur Guðnadóttir, author of the film's music.
Given this success, it is not surprising that the studio Warner Bros. - who never hesitates to use big means, whether to hire renowned actors or quite simply to finance his big budget films - has here aimed even higher. After all, the sequel is certainly eagerly awaited by fans, but also eagerly awaited after the phenomenal success of its first part. And for this, the studio did not hesitate to spend large sums to convince Todd Phillips et Joaquin Phoenix to come back for a second opus and to convince Lady Gaga to be part of the adventure alongside them.
According to Variety, the budget for Joker: Folie à Deux has increased to around $200 million, a significant increase from the first film's $60 million. A spectacular increase which is notably due to salary issues. Sources indeed affirm that Joaquin Phoenix reportedly received $20 million to reprise his role (compared to $4.5 million for the first), while Lady Gaga was reportedly paid around $12 million to play Harley Quinn. As director, co-writer and producer, Todd Phillipswould also have received 20 million dollars.
A musical ?
After the success of the first part, however, one doubt arises: the "musical comedy" side of the sequel. In fact, since Joker: Folie à Deux was presented as such, a certain skepticism set in. The success of musicals these days is difficult to predict. Case in point: Warner lost $40 million on The Color Purple last year, according to Variety sources.
However, as the film's cinematographer, Lawrence Sher, explained during an online masterclass, Joker: Folie à Deux is not really a musical: " There is music, but it's not a musical film strictly speaking but... there's just music in it. "
He added : " The music is part of the film and the characters, but I don't know if it's a musical. But there is music, as there was a lot of in the first Joker. And there are things that we weren't able to do in this film and which, by extension, are part of the DNA of the sequel. "
In 2019, in an interview with Première, Joaquin Phoenix had suggested that nothing was impossible for a series of Jokernot even a musical.
" I think the character's power of fascination is endless. It can thrive in many different environments. A sequel usually seeks to replicate what worked in the first film, but with Joker, you could really go anywhere. "
" To celebrate the end of filming, I took twenty classics from the history of cinema, Photoshopped the photo of the Joker onto each of them and gave them all to Todd. Rosemary's Baby, The Godfather, Singing in the Rain... It was a way of saying: we can put the Joker in anything. In a musical, anywhere, there is something to do. You can take it anywhere ", he added.
On the occasion of Valentine's Day, Todd Phillips announced the upcoming online release of the first trailer for the film which should be published in April, for a release scheduled for next October. " I hope your day is filled with love ", he wrote.
From one Joker to another
More Joaquin Phoenix isn't the only Joker we're talking about right now. On the DC side, rumors are rife about the potential return of Barry Keoghan in The Batman 2, the sequel to Matt Reeves' film with Robert Pattinson scheduled for October 2025.
After a furtive appearance of the character at the end of The Batman (2022) in Arkham Asylum, then the revelation of his deleted scene presenting an exchange between Batman and this budding Joker, Matt Reeves had clarified that this did not mean that he would be back later. However, in a profile of the actor published last week, Vanity Fair seems to have revealed something we didn't already have in one of their questions posed to the popular Saltburn actor.
" After that, you have the Masters of the Air miniseries, and you also play the Joker in The Batman 2. What do you want your career to look like in the future? "
A question to which the actor answered without mentioning The Batman 2 - and without denying his involvement. Will he be present in the next part? The question is on everyone's lips.
Mark your calendars, Joker: Folie à Deux will be released on our screens on October 2, 2024. In the meantime, Joker (2019) can be rediscovered in streaming on Prime Video.
