Venice [Italy], September 5: Todd Phillips' musical psychological thriller 'Joker: Folie à Deux' received a standing ovation at the 81st Venice International Film Festival. The film, starring Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga, along with director Todd Phillips, were greeted with overwhelming applause at the Sala Grande, earning a 10.5-minute standing ovation, as reported by The Hollywood Reporter.
During the ovation, the audience repeatedly chanted "Ga-ga, Ga-ga!" and expressed their admiration for the actor-singer with shouts of "Gaga, we love you!" Lady Gaga responded by blowing kisses and thanking her fans, while her co-star, Joaquin Phoenix, amused her with playful gestures during the applause.
The original 'Joker' was both a critical and commercial success, earning 11 Oscar nominations. Joaquin Phoenix won Best Actor, and Hildur Guðnadóttir took home the award for Original Score. It also became the highest-grossing R-rated film in history. In the sequel, Phoenix returns as Joker, while Lady Gaga joins the cast as Harley Quinn.
The supporting cast features Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Jacob Lofland, and Harry Lawtey, with Zazie Beetz reprising her role as Sophie from the first film. The sequel, reportedly a musical, expands on Phoenix's dance scenes from the original movie.
The first 'Joker' earned over $1 billion globally and won Phoenix the Oscar for Best Actor. Ahead of the sequel’s premiere, Todd Phillips shared that returning to Venice with this film "felt right," though he admitted being more nervous about making the follow-up. "It’s easier to approach something as an outsider than as the incumbent," he said. "The second one brought more nerves."
In 'Folie à Deux,' Lady Gaga plays Lee, who eventually transforms into Harley Quinn, a patient at Arkham State Hospital, where Phoenix’s character, Arthur Fleck, is imprisoned. As Arthur joins a music therapy group, a romantic relationship develops between him and Lee. Recognizing Arthur as the Joker, Lee tries to reignite his darker alter-ego.
Sophie Dumond (Zazie Beetz), Arthur's neighbor from the first film, makes a brief return as a witness for the prosecution team led by assistant district attorney Harvey Dent (Harry Lawtey), who later becomes the villain Two-Face.
Phillips and Phoenix agreed that if they were to make a sequel, it had to be bold and daring, as Phillips explained, "We wanted to swing for the fences and create something as unexpected as the first one, even though it's a sequel."
Lady Gaga described her experience working with Phoenix as "a breeze," adding, "It was a completely different experience from any other actor I’ve worked with. He’s incredibly loose and free."
When asked about his weight loss for the role, Phoenix declined to specify how much he lost, noting, "It was harder this time, but still safe. I’m 49 now, so I probably shouldn’t do it again." He jokingly added, "During rehearsals, we left for a month and came back, and Gaga had lost a lot of weight—it was really impressive." Gaga humorously noted, "We fed [Joaquin] blueberries when he was hungry."
'Joker: Folie à Deux' is set for release on October 4.
.png)
