New Joker 2 Set Footage Leak Seems to Confirm Musical Rumors

Joker: Folie a Deux, the highly anticipated sequel to the gritty DC-themed psychological thriller from 2019, is shooting in New York City and parts of New Jersey at the moment after spending some time in Los Angeles earlier this month.

It’s in the Big Apple where we got our first glimpses at Lady Gaga’s take on Harley Quinn, as she led a protest outside the courthouse where Joaquin Phoenix’s Arthur Fleck is presumably being tried for his crimes in the first film. We’ve also learned that one Harvey Dent is involved in the case — we’re going to assume as the Gotham City District Attorney working to put the Joker away for good. But based on other photos and footage leaked from the set in March, the charges aren’t going to stick, as Arthur finds himself on the streets once again, causing even more chaos.

But according to reports, we shouldn’t expect just another cookie-cutter sequel where the Joker breaks out of Arkham State Hospital and goes on a crime spree with Harley. It was THR who broke the story in 2022 that Joker: Folie a Deux would actually be a musical, and the latest set videos to hit the internet seem to confirm this report…

Footage captured just outside of a set appears to reveal that Gaga is currently filming musical numbers for the movie, including what sounds like a rendition of “A Couple of Swells,” a duet by Fred Astaire and Judy Garland for the 1948 musical Easter Parade. Considering the song is a two-hander, it’s possible that Gaga will be sharing the stage with Phoenix for this song. While musicals aren’t usually what you think of when considering the actor’s impressive CV, one of Phoenix’s most memorable roles is as Johnny Cash in the biopic Walk the Line, in which he covered many of the country singer’s most famous tunes.

The question remains whether Joker: Folie a Deux will be a full-fledged musical or if Joker and Harley will only briefly break into song and dance in the movie. We know there’s quite a bit going on beyond the courthouse and Arkham State Hospital, though. Other recent set photos taken in NYC show a fugitive Arthur making his way through the streets of Gotham.

A video also shows him covering his face while he passes people on the sidewalk. This moment seems to follow an earlier scene shot in Los Angeles where Arthur is running away from the police, along with two other criminals dressed as clowns. Whatever is happening there, Arthur doesn’t look like his usual cheery Joker self in these new images.

Other pictures taken at the courthouse set where earlier in the month Lady Gaga was protesting Arthur’s imprisonment show the Clown Prince of Crime arriving for his trial, wearing a brown suit and striped tie that look similar to the dust-covered clothes he’s wearing in the photos above. Does this mean that when Arthur makes his escape, it’ll be straight from the trial? Do some of his fans break him out of the courthouse? After all, at least one of the goons he was running with in the earlier LA set photos is also pictured as part of the protests outside the courthouse…

We’ll get a better idea of how Arthur got his groove back when Joker: Folie a Deux hits theaters on Oct. 4, 2024.