When the first Joker film hit theaters, it blew the doors off the box office despite being a Rated-R movie about Batman’s greatest foe that didn’t actually have Batman in it. Naturally, its sequel Joker: Folie à Deux is going to stick to that winning formula as it adds Lady Gaga’s Harley Quinn into the mix.
The film has officially locked down an R-rating as it continues the original’s trend of being a dark, twisted exploration of the Clown Prince of Crime that very liberally apes Martin Scorsese.
Via Variety:
The musical sequel to 2019’s “Joker,” starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga, has been rated R for “some strong violence, language throughout, some sexuality and brief full nudity,” according to the MPA’s daily ratings bulletin. This is in line with the original “Joker,” which was rated R for “strong bloody violence, disturbing behavior, language and brief sexual images.”
However, amidst all the violence and depravity, the Joker sequel is taking an unexpected swerve by being a full-on “jukebox musical.” Online Joker fans freaked out after learning that the Gaga-starring sequel will include a total of 15 “very well-known songs” including classic show tunes like “That’s Entertainment.”
While director Todd Phillips had teased that the sequel will be a musical, no one fully believed it would go this hard into the genre. It will be interesting to see whether Joker fans will stir up another billion dollar box office now that they know there’s going to be a whole lot of singing and dancing.
Joker: Folie à Deux opens in theaters on October 4.
(Via Variety)