Joker 2 is reportedly more than triple the budget of its predecessor
Industry reports suggest that the budget for Joker 2 or Joker: Folie à Deux, is more than triple the budget of its previous instalment. These claims have been made by popular news outlets such as Comicbook, Cinemablend, and Dexerto, among several others. As opposed to the approximate budget of around 55–70 million dollars for Joker, Joker 2 is created with an approximate budget of 200 million dollars.
According to Variety, a part of the budget went into getting the actors associated with the movie. While Joaquin Phoenix, who portrays Arthur Fleck a.k.a. Joker, reportedly charged a fee of 20 million dollars for the upcoming film, Lady Gaga, who plays Harleen Quinzel, a.k.a. Harley Quinn, reportedly charged a fee of 12 million dollars.
The rest of the budget seemingly went into acquiring the film's associated crew. After the massive success of Joker, it now looks like Warner Bros. Pictures does not want to leave any stone unturned to ensure the success of Joker 2.
Is Joker 2 a musical?
Joker 2 is going to be a musical. This news first made the rounds when the movie's music composer, Hildur Guðnadóttir made a comment in an interview with ComicBook.com in 2023.
"All I can say is there is going to be a lot of music, that’s all I can give away,” she said.
Additionally, in an article dated March 22, 2024, Variety also reported that Joker: Folie à Deux has multiple renditions of popular tracks, including That's Entertainment from The Band Wagon, a 1953 musical. The news outlet further mentioned that there is reportedly scope for a few original tracks to be included as well. However, details regarding the lyricist, composer, and others associated with the alleged songs remained unknown at the time of writing.
Even the first teaser for Joker: Folie à Deux, released by Warner Bros. Pictures on April 10, 2024, seemed to suggest that the movie will include a lot of music and songs. The teaser has a musical theme with one song playing throughout its entirety. The song is a rendition of the 1965 hit, What The World Needs Is Love, by Jackie DeShannon.
What does the title of Joker 2 mean?
Joker 2 is titled Joker: Folie à Deux. Folie à Deux is a French term that translates to shared madness or madness for two, in English. In medical terms, this is referred to as shared psychotic disorder. The condition usually occurs when two people in close proximity to one another, over time, end up sharing their mental health issues, so much so, that they become indistinguishable.
In the case of Joker: Folie à Deux, these two people seem to be Arthur Fleck and Harleen Quinzel, who gradually turn into their antihero versions, Joker and Harley Quinn.
Joker 2 will be released in theatres across the United States on October 4, 2024.