After his 2019 hit Joker, Todd Phillips knew he wanted to do more with the character. Joker: Folie à Deux picks up two years after the original, and features singing by Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga. The director spoke with Terry Gross about his collaboration with Phoenix, how he got into filmmaking, and casting Gaga. Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoices NPR Privacy Policy
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A new sequel to the film, Joker, opens next month.
Starring Joaquin Phoenix as the Joker and Lady Gaga as Lee Quinzel, this film is a dark and unusual musical.
The soundtrack hasn't been released yet, but we'll hear some of the songs a little later.
My guest Todd Phillips directed and co wrote both Joker films.
Joker is an arch villain of the Batman stories, and Lee Quinzel is a version of Harley Quinn, the Joker's partner in crime, before going her own way.
Phillips describes the films as an origin story, but not the origin story.
Both films are connected to the DC Comics universe, but theyre more like art house films than superhero films.
In Phillips first Joker film, Phoenix plays Arthur Fleck, a troubled man with a history of mental health problems.
His dream is to become a stand up comic.
His actual job is dressing as a clown for an agency that rents out clowns for parties and occasions.
One day, on the way home from work, still wearing his clown makeup, hes attacked on the subway by three young men.
He shoots and kills them.
Crime has gotten so bad in Gotham City, where the film is set, that he becomes a folk hero.
His dream comes true when hes invited to be a guest on his favorite late night show, hosted by Murray Franklin, played by Robert De Niro.
But Arthur realizes Murray has been mocking him, so he shoots and kills Murray live on tv in the new sequel, Joker for Le Arthur has spent the past two years in the criminally insane wing of a psychiatric institution, where he's awaiting trial for his murders.
At a music therapy class, he meets Lee, who is a fan of Arthur's alter ego, the Joker.