Joaquin Phoenix once scared his ‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ co-star Harry Lawtey’s mom by showing up on FaceTime in full Joker makeup.
“[Phoenix] suggested, as a joke, that we FaceTime my mum and scare her,” the actor told Variety. So, Phoenix stayed in full clown makeup for the role during a rehearsal.
Lawtey revealed the rest of the prank, “My mum was in England, so it was quite late, and she was getting ready for bed. And I said, ‘Hello,’ and then I brought the phone up to my face, and Joaquin put his head on my shoulder. My mum screamed, ran away, and woke up my dad.”
Lawtey is playing Harvey Dent in ‘Joker: Folie à Deux.’ It also stars Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, and Zazie Beetz. The movie comes out exactly five years after Todd Phillips’ 2019 film ‘Joker.’
“Funny thing: my agents knew what the part was, but didn’t tell me because they thought it wouldn’t help,” Harry previously spoke with i-D about his thoughts on playing Harvey Dent. “I’m so grateful for that because I went in with a bit more focus and openness rather than anxiety.”
The actor then shared, “As for Harvey, I tried to play it as cool as possible. Don’t get me wrong, the name certainly carries weight, but I tried to take on Todd’s approach: that there was no point in [playing Harvey Dent] unless I felt I could take some ownership over it.”
“When I got to LA, they were already filming. I spent time around the unit base but didn’t even set eyes on Joaquin because he was so busy,” he also replied to a question about meeting Phoenix. “Then I went in for my first day and the first time I ever set eyes on him was during my first take, when he walked into the room.”
He added, “It was a close-up of me [watching] him walk through the door. I promise you, I had never even seen him before that. The first time I saw him, I had a camera right on my face, and I just remember thinking: ‘There he is!'”
‘Joker: Folie à Deux’ arrives in theaters on October 4.
