Pop music superstar and actor Lady Gaga has opened up about the negative reception to her most recent movie, Joker: Folie à Deux.
The Grammy-winning artist has largely kept quiet about her involvement in the film since its release. Gaga portrayed a more grounded version of classic DC comics villain Harley Quinn, though she deepened her ties to the project with a companion album titled Harlequin. After months without much word on her thoughts regarding Joker 2’s reception, she finally shared her feelings during a conversation with Elle. She explained that she worked through the negativity, as she works through any tough release, by managing her expectations ahead of time.
“People just sometimes don’t like some things,” Gaga said. “It’s that simple. And I think to be an artist, you have to be willing for people to sometimes not like it. And you keep going even if something didn’t connect in the way that you intended.”
Joker: Folie à Deux, which followed director Todd Phillips’ gargantuan 2019 film, premiered last October to less-than-favorable reviews from critics and fans alike. It currently sits with 31% on Rotten Tomatoes on both audience scales, with our own 5/10 review calling it a “mediocre” movie that “wastes its potential as a movie musical, a courtroom drama, and a sequel that has anything meaningful to say about or add to the first Joker.” Its time in theaters was so underwhelming that it only took weeks before it saw a digital release, with Warner Bros. Discover CEO David Zaslav later calling the film’s performance “disappointing.”
“When that makes its way into your life, that can be hard to get control of,” Gaga said of the fear of failure. “It’s part of the mayhem.”
While Joker: Folie à Deux didn’t manage to live up to the hype, Gaga is moving forward with other plans. The artist recently revealed that her latest studio album, Mayhem, will be released this March, marking the end of a five-year wait since her last full-length record, Chromatica. For more on Joker 2, you can see why Quentin Tarantino says he loved the sequel, and why Hideo Kojima believes the movie’s reception will change over time. You can also check out our list of the biggest disappointments of 2024 here.
Michael Cripe is a freelance contributor with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP.
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