In the 2019 film, Arthur Fleck, played by Joaquin Phoenix, first danced on the stairs of West 167th Street in the Bronx. Lady Gaga recently channeled Arthur Fleck with her latest filming location for the eagerly awaited Joker sequel, even if she isn’t quite dancing her way down.
This week, Gaga, 37, filmed scenes for Joker: Folie à Deux in New York City at the same staircase that Joaquin Phoenix’s title character danced down in the 2019 blockbuster. In the follow-up, Gaga, who plays Harley Quinn, recorded sequences at the renowned stairway that connects Shakespeare and Anderson avenues near West 167th Street in the Bronx.
The most recent photograph taken at the scene shows Gaga walking down the graffiti-covered staircase while wearing a big black jacket, gloves, and none of the Quinn makeup that she was wearing in earlier filming.
It’s unclear from further footage captured by bystanders whether Lady Gaga’s small dance motion, which resembles the original scenario, was done for shooting. Other locals’ video also captures Gaga slowly making her way to the stairs before doing the small shuffle and heading back down.
Phoenix’s portrayal of Arthur Fleck garnered him the Best Actor Oscar in 2020, in part because of the 2019 scene on the stairwell and his entire performance in the first movie. In June 2022, officially announced Gaga’s participation in the Joker sequel and said that she was in negotiations to play Harley Quinn.
The information was initially released by The Hollywood Reporter. In August, after sharing an animated teaser film featuring the silhouettes of herself and Joaquin Phoenix dancing to retro music, Gaga herself officially announced her casting.
Gaga recently worked with extras to film some additional scenes at Manhattan’s City Hall while donning an outfit that included a red jacket, a black and white striped blouse, a black skirt, and mesh black leggings.
The Joker’s longtime henchwoman and love interest, played by Margot Robbie in the 2016 film Suicide Squad, its 2021 follow-up The Suicide Squad, and the character’s spinoff film Birds of Prey, made waves in the Saturday morning animated series Batman: The Animated Series in 1992.
Gaga plays the role in the film (2020). The stairway, commonly referred to as the “Joker Stairs,” has gained popularity as a tourist destination ever since the 2019 movie made its debut, even getting a Trip Advisor page.
According to a 2019 New York Times article, Joker director Todd Phillips was watching American Gangster when he first noticed one New York staircase. Todd Phillips then hired site scout Aaron Hurvitz to identify the stairs.
On his search for stairs that seemed to be plucked from the Batman universe, the site scout eventually came across the other now-famous 132 steps in the Bronx. According to a local, “People from all over the world are now flocking here to gaze at the stairs, the famous stairs.”
Fans are eagerly awaiting the debut of Joker: Folie à Deux in theaters on October 4, 2024, as Gaga is currently filming at the well-known tourist destination for Joker and Margot Robbie, 32, recently told MTV that her casting “makes me so happy.”
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