2024 will be an interesting year for superhero films and the comic book genre—especially after a dire 2023. This year was arguably the worst year for superheroes ever—four DC movies bombed in a row (“Shazam! Fury Of The Gods,” “The Flash,” “Blue Beetle” and “Aquaman 2”), Marvel’s “Secret Invasion” show received the lowest reviews in the company’s Disney+ series history, and they had one bonafide box office flop in “The Marvels.” So, what’s the plan for 2024? Much less. Marvel is releasing all of one film (“Deadpool 3”), and DC Studio is also releasing just one, “Joker: Folie à Deux,” the sequel to Todd Phillips’ “Joker” film with Joaquin Phoenix.
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The R-rated “Joker” grossed over $ 1 billion and became the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time. How will Phillips and Phoenix top it? Well, by apparently turning it into something of a musical. We don’t know much about the film thus far, but it’s supposed to take place at Arkham Asylum, Phoenix reprises his Joker character, and Lady Gaga plays Harley Quinn. This makes a lot of sense, given in the comics, because Joker first meets Harley Quinn when she is Harleen Frances Quinzel, a psychiatrist treating mentally ill patients at Arkham, which is infamously known as the home for the criminally insane and houses many of Batman’s great villains.
“Joker: Folie à Deux” takes its title from the French term, Folie à deux, a rare psychiatric syndrome in which symptoms of a delusional belief, and sometimes hallucinations, are “transmitted” from one individual to another. The shorter version is “folly of two” or a shared madness, which again fits the bill of the Joker and Harley Quinn story in the comics.
The film is once again written by Scott Silver and director Todd Phillips, who has really managed to break out of the R-rated comedy mold he was in with “The Hangover” movies. Silver was nominated for Best Original Screenplay for writing David O. Russell’s “The Fighter.”
Zazie Beetz is apparently the only other actor who reprises her role from the first film. The film also stars Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Jacob Lofland, and Harry Lawtey, all in unknown roles. Hildur Guðnadóttir, who won the Best Original Score Oscar for the first “Joker,” is writing the music again, and Lawrence Sher will once more handle cinematography duties.
Todd Phillips posted new photos of ‘Folie à Deux’ on Instagram over the holidays, writing, “Wishing everyone a happy holiday and a beautiful new year. Oct 2024 #Joker2.” The film is currently set for an October 4, 2024, release, the only DC movie to be released next year. Check out the IG images below.
