Joaquin Phoenix On Singing Live For Joker 2: 'We Tried To Be True To The Moment'

Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga starrer Joker: Folie à Deux is set to take a different approach as the duo take up the musical drama film. While Phoenix returns as Arthur Fleck, aka The Joker, Gaga will play Lee/Harley Quinn. A professional Grammy-winning singer, Lady Gaga might find it easy to take on the singing role. However, it did prove a bit difficult for her co-star. Considering that they wanted their performances to feel as “raw and unpredictable” as their characters, both actors actually sang live for the film.

Phoenix recently opened up about his experience singing live for Joker 2, sharing that it was very important for him, and that he and Gaga tried to stay true to the moment. “It was important to me that we never perform the songs as one typically does in a musical,” he told Variety for a cover story on his film. Notably, the makers even had a pianist on site to provide accompaniment off-camera.

“We didn’t want vibrato and perfect notes. Instead, we let the emotion guide it and were mostly trying to be true to the moment,” he added. Lady Gaga also chimed in explaining that they wanted to show their characters’ “shared madness” through real singing and capture the real Arthur and Lee.

On the other hand, director Todd Phillips revealed it felt like a “nightmare” to edit the singing parts of the actors. Stating that “capturing the music inside them” required an unorthodox approach through live singing along with a live piano player, Phillips explained how their takes were spliced together into one seamless number in the editing room.

Joaquin Phoenix On Singing Live For Joker 2

Earlier, speaking to Empire magazine, Phoenix quipped, “I do seem to remember her spitting up coffee the first time I sang, so that felt good, that was exciting, and that made me feel confident.” The actor further shared how he and the Shallow singer worked together to build a strong musical rhythm between their characters for the film. “She (Gaga) was always very encouraging and would be like, ‘Go with what you feel.’ For somebody who’s not a performer in that way, it can be… uncomfortable to do that, but also very exciting,” he added.

Joker 2 takes place around two years after the original film. This time at an asylum, Arthur Fleck awaits the death penalty for murder when he meets Lee. The film will be released on October 4.