MOVIE NEWS – If fans don’t fall in love with the newest take on Harley Quinn, it certainly won’t be because of the script. Despite the countless rewrites of Joker: Folie à Deux, Lady Gaga found the creative process of shaping the perfect screenplay both “cool” and “liberating.” In Arthur Fleck’s (Joaquin Phoenix) latest cinematic outing, Gaga takes on the daunting task of playing one of DC’s most beloved characters in Todd Phillips’ highly anticipated sequel.

Even though the Grammy-winning singer has recently starred in a few major films (A Star Is Born, House of Gucci), she still considers Folie à Deux to be the pinnacle of her movie career. In an interview with Vogue, Gaga revealed:

“[Joker 2 is] the biggest movie I’ve ever been a part of […] We’d very often meet in Joaquin’s trailer, and sometimes we would just tear the script up and start all over. It was a really cool, liberating process.”

“My line about Joaquin [Phoenix] is that he’s the tunnel at the end of the light. You think, Okay, this scene works, let’s just go shoot it. And Joaquin’s like, ‘No, no, no, let’s just have a quick meeting about it.’ And it’s three hours later, and you’re rewriting it on a napkin. What’s great about Lady Gaga is that she really holds her own both off camera when we’re in the trailer tearing things apart — which she probably spent the night before learning — but also on camera. It was not a small feat.”

Lady Gaga’s Inner ‘Mania and Chaos’ Fueled Her Harley Quinn

Lady Gaga is stepping into a massive role, one in which fans can be passionately supportive or mercilessly critical. Yet portraying Harley Quinn in the musically surreal Joker: Folie à Deux seems like a natural fit for the musician/actress, even though co-star Joaquin Phoenix “encouraged her to sing poorly.” Gaga spoke about embracing the pop culture icon and adding her own “mania” and “chaos” to the DC character:

“Harley Quinn is a character people know from the ether of pop culture. I had a different experience creating her, namely my experience with mania and chaos inside — for me, it creates a quietness. Sometimes, women are labeled as these overly emotional creatures and when we are overwhelmed we are erratic or unhinged. But I wonder if when things become so broken from reality, when we get pushed too far in life, what if it makes you… quiet?”

Lady Gaga Was Shocked When She Heard Joaquin Phoenix Sing

When Joaquin Phoenix first sang in front of Lady Gaga, it wasn’t exactly a pleasant experience for the Grammy winner.

Phoenix understood that Gaga’s exceptional vocal talent could potentially overshadow her character, so he gave her a unique piece of advice:

“I encouraged her to sing poorly. I remember asking her to sing without her vibrato. She has a beautiful vibrato — too beautiful. I think she felt naked without it. But as soon as she moved away from technique, she unlocked her character’s voice.”

The pairing of Phoenix and Gaga on the big screen is set for a massive opening. Projections for Joker: Folie à Deux are predicting a domestic debut between $115 million to $140 million over its first three days this fall. For comparison, the original Joker made $96.4 million in its 2019 opening weekend.

Source: MovieWeb