Even if you haven't seen Joker: Folie à Deux, if you've been keeping up with the trailers and promotion, you probably have a pretty good idea of which character we're referring to. But just in case, spoilers follow.
In addition to a new take on Harley Quinn played by Lady Gaga, the sequel introduces young Gotham City District Attorney Harvey Dent (Harry Lawtey), who leads the prosecution in Arthur Fleck's trial.
When Joker's followers set off a bomb that blows the side of the courthouse apart towards the end of the movie, we catch a quick glimpse of Dent laying in the debris with blood and dust covering the left side of his face as Arthur makes his escape.
A clear nod to the character's villainous persona from the comics, but was this actually supposed to serve as an origin story for the Batman foe who will come to be known as Two-Face?
"Yes, of course," Phillips tells EW. "[We're] trying to put a realistic answer to why certain things happen. Why does he have [that face]?"
The filmmaker goes on to note that the audience is "meant to view the moment as Dent's metamorphosis into the character. He adds that Lawtey is "playing the character before that character, he’s the young D.A. All we’re doing is saying, let’s use this lore as a foundation, but run it through a realistic lens, or at least a different lens than it’s been run through in other things, to make it our own."
Dent isn't seen or heard from again, and with Phillips making it clear that he's now "done" with this universe, the chances of Lawtey getting the opportunity to revisit the character are very slim.
From acclaimed writer/director/producer Todd Phillips comes Joker: Folie À Deux, the much-anticipated follow-up to 2019’s Academy Award-winning Joker, which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and remains the (second) highest-grossing R-rated film of all time.
The new film stars Joaquin Phoenix once again in his Oscar-winning dual role as Arthur Fleck/Joker, opposite Oscar winner Lady Gaga (A Star Is Born). The film also stars Oscar nominees Brendan Gleeson (The Banshees of Inisherin) and Catherine Keener (Get Out, Capote), alongside Zazie Beetz, reprising her role from Joker.
The movie is rated R for “some strong violence, language throughout, some sexuality, and brief full nudity.”
Do you plan on seeing the Joker sequel in theaters, or have the reviews put you off? Let us know in the comments section down below.