‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ Cast and Character Guide

Joaquin Phoenix as Arthur Fleck, Joker

Arthur Fleck is back. As introduced in the first film, he was a weakling who was pushed around by his abusive mother (Frances Conroy), who used to work for the Wayne family and claimed that Arthur was the illegitimate child of Thomas Wayne. (He was not.) He was also bullied at his job, where he worked as a sign-twirling clown. Eventually he was pushed too far and ended up murdering six people, including his mother.

In “Joker: Folie à Deux” he is waiting to stand trial for the murders and is eventually does get his day in court (the last hour of the movie is basically a courtroom drama). He also falls in love with Lady Gaga’s Harleen “Lee” Quinzel, another inmate and a fan of his, er, work. Together, they escape into an elaborate fantasy space where they are both singers, expressing themselves openly (even the dark parts) through musical numbers.

But can true love rise above all else? And will he actually see the light of day again?

Phoenix won an Oscar for his work in the first “Joker.” He’s also recently appeared in Ridley Scott’s “Napoleon,” Ari Aster’s “Beau is Afraid” and Gus Van Sant’s “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot.” He’s also starred in Paul Thomas Anderson’s “Inherent Vice” and “The Master,” and appeared in everything from “Her” to “Signs.”

Lady Gaga as Dr. Harleen Quinzel, Harley Quinn

Lady Gag plays Harleen “Lee” Quinzel, this movie’s version of Harley Quinn, the character that originally appeared in “Batman: The Animated Series” and was brought to life in live action by Margot Robbie in “Suicide Squad,” its sequel and her own spin-off movie that, for the sake of time, we’ll just call “Birds of Prey.” This version of Harley is a fellow inmate at Arkham, supposedly there because she set fire to her apartment building with her parents (and other tenants) still in it.

Arthur first spots her in a musical therapy class that one of the guards later brings him to. He meets her, who says how appreciative she is of his work and how she has seen the TV movie based on his life “20 times.” Soon, they are disappearing into a musical fantasy world together. But can she save him? Does she even want to? These questions linger.

Lady Gaga has appeared in Bradley Cooper’s “A Star Is Born” and Ridley Scott’s “House of Gucci,” as well as Robert Rodriguez’s “Machete Kills” and “Sin City: A Dame to Kill For.” On television, she has had a role in two cycles of “American Horror Story” – “Hotel” and “Roanoke.”

Zazie Beetz as Sophie Dumond

In the first “Joker” Sophie Dumond was Arthur’s neighbor, a young single mother who he imagined having a romantic relationship with. She appears in this new “Joker” as a witness for the prosecution, detailing how scared she was of him and how she had to move from her former apartment. It’s a brief but powerful appearance.

Beetz recently finished her stint on “Atlanta,” where she played Van since the show began in 2016. She also recently appeared alongside Brad Pitt as an assassin in the action comedy “Bullet Train.” Other recent works include Steven Soderbergh’s miniseries “Full Circle” and voicing a character in DreamWorks Animation’s “The Bad Guys.”

Brendan Gleeson as Jackie Sullivan

Jackie Sullivan is one of the prison guards in charge of Arthur at Arkham. At first he seems genial, maybe even nice. He gives Arthur a cigarette every time Arthur tells a joke and takes Arthur to the music therapy class where he meets Harley. But soon a more sinister side of Sullivan is uncovered, particularly when Arthur calls out his Arkham handlers in court.

Gleeson is one of our most beloved character actors. He was recently nominated for an Oscar for his work in “The Banshees of Inisherin.” Talk about range, Gleeson starred as Donald Trump in “The Comey Rule” miniseries and King Duncan in “The Tragedy of Macbeth” at around the same time. He also appeared as “Mad Eye” Moody in the “Harry Potter” films, as well as “Paddington 2,” “Edge of Tomorrow” and will co-star alongside Nicolas Cage in the upcoming live-action “Spider-Noir” series.

Catherine Keener as Maryanne Stewart

Maryanne Stewart is Arthur Dent’s defense attorney. At one point a guard calls her his “fancy” defense attorney, but it’s unclear why she is defending the killer known as the Joker. Is she looking for publicity? Actually interested in freeing him? Or was she court-appointed? (It’s not like the Joker is swimming in cash.) Sadly, she remains two-dimensional throughout the course of the movie. We’d love to know more.

Catherine Keener has been nominated for an Oscar twice, for her work in “Being John Malkovich” and again for her performance as Harper Lee in “Capote.” She has starred in so, so many movies, everything from “Adaptation” to “Get Out” to “Incredibles 2” to “The 40-Year-Old Virgin.”

Jacob Lofland as Ricky Meline

Ricky Meline is one of Arthur Fleck’s acolytes in Arkham. He is devoted to Arthur, but not in the overzealous way some in the outside world are. Soon, he’ll find his commitment to the Joker might be dangerous to his health.

Jacob Lofland is a young actor who has appeared in Jeff Nichols’ “Mud” and two of the “Maze Runner” movies. On television, he appeared in 10 episodes of “Justified” and has one of the main roles in Taylor Sheridan’s upcoming series “Landman.”

Harry Lawtey as Harvey Dent

Harvey Dent is the district attorney in Gotham City, a role that has been previously played by Billy Dee Williams (in Tim Burton’s original “Batman”), Tommy Lee Jones (in “Batman Forever”) and Aaron Eckhart in “The Dark Knight.” Of course, Dent typically follows a tragic trajectory from serving the law to becoming a criminal known as Two-Face. But that transformation doesn’t happen in “Joker: Folie à Deux.” Instead, this Dent is mostly blank – he’s just a young, somewhat idealistic lawyer and politician who is looking to convict Arthur Fleck on the charges brought against him. Simple as that.

British actor Harry Lawtey plays Dent, which is certainly a choice considering how seasoned the other performers who have played the character were. He can be seen in the HBO series “Industry” and has appeared in movies like “The Pale Blue Eye” and “Benediction.” This is certainly his biggest project yet.

Steve Coogan as Paddy Meyers

Paddy Meyers is the stand-in, of sorts, for the Robert De Niro character in the first film. De Niro’s character, Murray Franklin, was a late night talk show host and Paddy seems more of an investigative journalist type. But they serve the same function – to interrogate Arthur in an attempt to discover if the Joker is really a separate persona or if that concept is a ruse. Thankfully Paddy walks away from his encounter with Fleck. Which is more than can be said for poor Murray.

Steve Coogan is a popular British comedian. In America you will probably recognize him as Octavius from the “Night at the Museum” movies, from broad comedies “Tropic Thunder” and “The Other Guys,” or from his voice role in the “Despicable Me” and “Minion” movies.