Joaquin Phoenix, reprising his role as Joker/Arthur Fleck in Todd Phillips’ upcoming sequel, ‘Joker: Folie à Deux,’ revealed the challenges he faced during his intense weight loss journey for the film. The actor, known for his method acting and physical transformations, spoke about the added complexity of dance rehearsals for the sequel, something he didn’t encounter in the first ‘Joker.’
While he didn’t elaborate on his diet, Phoenix admitted that the dance rehearsals posed a unique challenge: “I don’t really want to talk about the diet, but I will say that there were a lot of rehearsals for dancing, which I didn’t do for the first one, so that was a little bit more complicated.” He humorously added, “It was a little bit more difficult than the last time, but it was safe. I am 49 now, so I shouldn’t be doing it. I think it will be my last time.”
Phoenix’s dedication to physical transformation for his roles is well-documented. For the first ‘Joker,’ he famously shed 52 pounds (23kg) through a strict diet of lettuce and steamed vegetables. However, he was less inclined to discuss his weight loss approach for the sequel, stating, “I’m not going to talk about it this time. I talked about it a lot last time, and I think I just got carried away with it. I was very obsessive and I felt like I was just doing it because I had to.”
He confessed to feeling overwhelmed by his own intensity during the press tour for the first film, saying, “By the end of the press tour, I was angry and frustrated because I felt like I was talking about it too much. I was just doing what I needed to do.” This time, however, he seems determined to avoid the same pitfalls. Despite this, he did reveal a figure, whispering, “47 pounds” into the microphone, quickly adding, “Just kidding. I don’t know.”
Phoenix also expressed admiration for Lady Gaga, who portrays Harley Quinn in the film, for her own physical transformation: “Stefani [Gaga] lost a lot of weight too. I remember meeting her for the first rehearsal and then she disappeared and when she came back, she was so thin. It was really impressive.” However, Gaga has been more tight-lipped about her own weight loss, simply stating, “We spent a lot of time making sure that we could transform into our characters and we were constantly refining the details.”
As ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ gears up for release, fans are eagerly awaiting the film’s release and eager to see the dynamic duo of Phoenix and Gaga in action.
