Joker 2: Lady Gaga in Early Talks to Play Harley Quinn and It’s a Musical

Lady Gaga, who recently starred in Ridley Scott's House of Gucci, is in early talks to star alongside Joaquin Phoenix in Warner Bros.' Joker: Folie à Deux, according to Deadline. Phoenix's deal for the upcoming Joker film hasn't been finalized yet, but we've heard he's in advanced talks. The premise of the Joker sequel has remained a mystery, though we do know that Todd Phillips will return as director. He co-wrote the script with Scott Silver, as he did on the first film. Gaga is set to play Harley Quinn, the Arkham Asylum psychiatrist who falls in love with her patient Arthur Fleck, aka the Joker, however, her version of the character will be set in a different DC universe than Margot Robbie's in the Suicide Squad flicks.

In 2019, Phillips released his first Joker film, which followed Fleck, a mentally disturbed stand-up comedian, as he went on a downward spiral that culminated in the birth of an iconic villain. The picture grossed over $1 billion worldwide and earned Phoenix his first Academy Award, as well as a trophy for Hildur Gunadóttir for Best Original Score.

Gaga's breakthrough role came in Warner Bros.' musical drama A Star Is Born, directed by actor-director Bradley Cooper and produced by Phillips. More recently, the actress and singer starred as Patrizia Reggiani in MGM and United Artists Releasing's House of Gucci and contributed the song "Hold My Hand" to Top Gun: Maverick, which has made more than $750 million worldwide.

All other information about "Folie à Deux" have been kept under wraps, so it's unclear whether Gaga will also contribute music to the project, although it's a fair guess that she will. Phillips collaborated with Gaga as one of the producers on the 2018 film "A Star Is Born," which earned Gaga an Oscar nomination for best actress and an Oscar victory for original song. Bradley Cooper, the star and director of that film, was also a producer on "Joker," but it's unknown how much of a role he'll have in "Folie à Deux."

For Warner Bros., Harley Quinn has proven to be a long-lasting character. Margot Robbie has performed the part three times, in 2016's "Suicide Squad," 2020's "Birds of Prey," and 2021's "The Suicide Squad," and Kaley Cuoco voices the character on HBO's "Harley Quinn," which will air Season 3 later this year. Phillips' "Joker" films, on the other hand, live in their own fictional universe from the rest of DC's offerings, much as how Robert Pattinson's "The Batman" can coexist with Michael Keaton's version of the character, who will appear in 2023's "The Flash."