Summary
By addressing one of the biggest mysteries from its 2019 predecessor,Joker: Folie à Deuxcould irredeemably change Bruce Wayne’s own origin story as Batman inTodd Phillips' darkJokerfranchise. Despite taking place outside the mainstreamDC Universe, 2019’sJokerdid introduce a younger Bruce Wayne, long before his parents' double murder and his evolution into the Caped Crusader. Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck and the young Bruce Wayne, played by Dante Pereira-Olson, may have a much deeper and more harrowing connection.
Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck was introduced in 2019’sJokeras a failing party clown and aspiring stand-up comedian, though his descent into darkness transformed him into the face of a violent revolution in Gotham City. This rampage, including a brutal murder on live TV, culminated in Fleck being institutionalized in Arkham Asylum, which is whereJoker: Folie à Deuxwill find him in October. While much ofFolie à Deuxis expected to focus on Fleck’s budding romance withLady Gaga’s Harley Quinn, some ofJoker’sburning questions could still be addressed.
Joker Failed To Definitively Answer Whether Thomas Wayne Was Arthur’s Father
One ofJoker’smost interesting side-stories focused onBrett Cullen’s Thomas Wayne, Bruce Wayne’s billionaire father who was running for the position of Mayor of Gotham City. Arthur Fleck’s mother, Penny, formerly worked for Thomas Wayne, and Arthur eventually finds a damning letter that alleges the older Wayne to be his biological father. Questions arose surrounding this claim following the reveal of Penny Fleck’s serious mental health issues and delusions, butit was never officially confirmed or denied whether Thomas Wayne actually is Arthur’s father.
Thomas Wayne being potentially rewritten as the Joker’s own father would be a monumental change fromBruce Wayne and the Joker’s backstoryand history in DC Comics.The suggestion that Todd Phillips may have established a familial bond between the Joker and Batman would add more complexities to their rivalry, but may provide a clearer reasoning and explanation for their age-old feud. While 2019’sJokerdidn’t provide an answer, however, the upcomingJoker: Folie à Deuxcan finally clear this matter up.
Joker 2 Has An Impossible Batman Problem
One new character revealed for Joker: Folie à Deux means that Todd Phillips' sequel will find it difficult to continue ignoring Bruce Wayne’s Batman.
Arthur’s History Will Be In Sharper Focus In Joker 2
Some of the magic of 2019’sJokerwas in the mysterious nature of the narrative, asaudiences never really knew whether what they were watching was real or not. This was never more evident in the development of Arthur Fleck’s romance with Zazie Beetz’s Sophie Dumond, which grew throughout the movie before being revealed to be completely fabricated and completely in Arthur’s mind. This was incredibly subversive, and is something that may be repeated inJoker: Folie à Deux’smusical numbers, but the sequel may actually reveal more of the truth.
Trailers forJoker: Folie à Deuxhave revealed that Arthur Fleck will be on trial in the sequel, which suggests that some actual facts will be revealed. On top of this, Arthur will also be attending therapy sessions in Arkham, which should help to better distinguish truth from fantasy, and perhaps foregoing the idea of Arthur being an unreliable narrator, as he was inJoker.This means thatJoker: Folie à Deuxmay be primed to finally address certain mysterious aspects of Arthur Fleck’s past.
Zazie Beetz is set to reprise her role of Sophie Dumond inJoker: Folie à Deux, though it’s unclear what role she will play in the sequel.
Joker Can Finally Confirm The Truth About Arthur’s Past
The question of Arthur Fleck’s true parentage has hung over theJokerfranchise for the last five years, but we may be very close to an explanation now. The fact thatJoker: Folie à Deuxcould potentially include more fact than fantasy means the real identities of Arthur’s mother and, more importantly, father, could actually be confirmed.It would still come as a huge shock if Thomas Wayne is outed as Arthur’s father, especially since this would impact the origin story of the young Bruce Wayne as Batman, but this would also be a monumental and exciting development, too.
Joker: Folie a Deux
Cast
Joker: Folie à Deux is the sequel to Todd Phillips' critically acclaimed comic book thriller Joker. Reprising his Academy Award-winning performance as the failed comedian Arthur Fleck, Joaquin Phoenix revisits the iconic DC character alongside Lady Gaga, who makes her debut as Joker’s lover Harley Quinn in this standalone continuity of the DC Universe.
