The full trailer for Joker: Folie À Deux confirmed that Harvey Dent will appear, with British actor Harry Lawtey (Industry, You & Me) taking on the role of Gotham City's Assistant DA.
Dent is obviously a major part of the Batman comic book lore, and while this version is not expected to make his fateful transformation into the villainous Two-Face, Lawtey still felt a certain amount of responsibility to put his own spin on this younger and highly ambitious take on the character.
During a recent interview, Lawtey revealed that he wasn't told which part he was auditioning for initially, and director Todd Phillips only told him when he was offering him the role over Zoom.
"Funny thing: my agents knew what the part was, but didn’t tell me because they thought it wouldn’t help. I’m so grateful for that because I went in with a bit more focus and openness rather than anxiety. 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."
Lawtey only has a few "short but pivotal scenes" in the sequel, but in the unlikely event of a third Joker movie, there's always a chance he could reprise the role - and start flipping that coin.
During a recent interview with IGN, Phillips explained why we won't see this movie's Dent doesn't embrace his darker side.
"We respect the comics. We get the comics. In Harley's case, we watched the animated series. Of course, Margot Robbie is Harley Quinn. But when we run things through this film — Harvey Dent is a perfect example. It's actually a simpler way of talking about what we did with Harley, which was really just put the real-world lens on it, and not that other movies didn't, but just run it through our Gotham."
"And so really, the Harvey Dent you meet in here [played by Harry Lawtey] is not a huge part, but if you're going to have a trial, why wouldn't you have the Assistant DA prosecuting Arthur Fleck be Harvey Dent?" he added. "But it's not about his – we don't really reveal his dark side. We see a young Harvey Dent."
In related news, some fans are convinced that this teaser image for The Penguin is hinting that Harvey Dent will be introduced in the series.
“Joker: Folie À Deux finds Arthur Fleck institutionalized at Arkham awaiting trial for his crimes as Joker. While struggling with his dual identity, Arthur not only stumbles upon true love, but also finds the music that's always been inside him."
From acclaimed writer/director/producer Todd Phillips comes Joker: Folie À Deux, the much-anticipated follow-up to 2019’s Academy Award-winning Joker, which earned more than $1 billion at the global box office and remains the (second) highest-grossing R-rated film of all time.
The new film stars Joaquin Phoenix once again in his Oscar-winning dual role as Arthur Fleck/Joker, opposite Oscar winner Lady Gaga (A Star Is Born). The film also stars Oscar nominees Brendan Gleeson (The Banshees of Inisherin) and Catherine Keener (Get Out, Capote), alongside Zazie Beetz, reprising her role from Joker.
The movie is rated R for “some strong violence, language throughout, some sexuality, and brief full nudity.”
The Joker sequel arrives in theaters on October 4.