Lady Gaga in Talks to Star as Harley Quinn in Joker 2, Which Will Be a Musical

A big name is reportedly in talks to join the cast of Joker 2, which has entered development under the working title of Joker: Folie à deux. THR reports that pop culture icon Lady Gaga, who has found great success in both film and music, is in early talks to star in the film. If these talks work out, Gaga would be starring as a new incarnation of Harley Quinn, the supervillain played by Margot Robbie in the DCEU.

Per the report, Joker 2 is also being developed as a musical, a stark contrast to the dark drama that was the original movie. That may explain why Gaga is at the top of the list to play Harley Quinn, given her proven success in both acting and music. Of course, it certainly doesn’t hurt that she happens to physically resemble the blonde-haired supervillain as well.

It was just recently when Todd Phillips confirmed that Joker 2 was finally in development after months of rumors. He posted an image of the script’s cover page on social media, with the “Folie à deux” phrase referencing a mental disorder that affects two or more individuals. The title has led to speculation that there could be two different Jokers in the movie, while others theorized it could mean that Harley Quinn would be introduced.

The stage has certainly been set for the latter, as Joker seemed to end with Arthur Fleck getting locked up in a psychiatric hospital. Harley Quinn was originally introduced in Batman: The Animated Series as a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum who gets manipulated by the Joker into falling in love with him and facilitating his escape. It’s unclear if Joker 2 would be incorporating this same origin story for the character or if Phillips has something entirely different planned for Harley.

Lady Gaga is known across the world for her chart-topping hits including “Just Dance,” “Poker Face,” “Born This Way,” and many others. She has since impressed critics with her acting skills with a starring role in the hit movie A Star Is Born, earning a Best Actress nomination at the Oscars along with a Best Original Song win for “Shallow,” which was featured on its soundtrack. More recently, Gaga had a starring role in the Ridley Scott film House of Gucci alongside Adam Driver, Jared Leto, Jeremy Irons, and Al Pacino.

Related: These Singers Were Nominated for Oscars in Acting Categories

Joker Topped $1 Billion With a Modest Budget

Joker was an incredible success for Warner Bros., to say the least. While it had a fairly modest budget for a comic book-based movie, costing around $60-70 million to produce, it became one of the highest-grossing movies of all time when it was released. Worldwide, the film banked over $1 billion to prove that standalone movies about DC characters can exist alongside the DCEU and still be successful.

Phillips was initially apprehensive about doing a sequel, so it has taken some time for the official announcement for Joker 2 to come in. Given the success of the original, Warner Bros. was eager to get the ball rolling, but Phillips seemed to be waiting for the right idea. That idea seems to be a musical with Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn.

Joker 2 doesn’t yet have an official release date.