Lady Gaga says she "had trouble leaving" characters behind

WASHINGTON: Lady Gaga opened up on her role in 'Joker: Folie a Deux' and how it has affected her psychologically after wrapping up the shoot, reported People.

Todd Phillips' directorial musical psychological thriller film 'Joker: Folie a Deux', received a standing ovation at the 81st Venice International Film Festival.

Lady Gaga plays the role of Harley Quinn opposite Joaquin Phoenix. Gaga plays Lee, who eventually becomes Harley Quinn, a patient in Arkham State Hospital, a mental institution where Phoenix's Arthur Fleck is a maximum-security inmate. The sequel to the 2019 film 'Joker' hit the theatres on October 4, after premiering at the Venice Film Festival.

The first 'Joker' movie won the Golden Lion at Venice in 2019. The first 'Joker' was a huge success, both critically and commercially.

It was nominated for 11 Oscars, with Joaquin Phoenix winning Best Actor and Hildur Gudnadottir winning for Original Score. It became the highest-grossing R-rated movie ever. In the sequel, Phoenix reprises his role as Joker, and Lady Gaga joins as Harley Quinn.

The supporting cast includes Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Jacob Lofland, and Harry Lawtey. Zazie Beetz returns as Sophie from the first film.

The sequel is said to be a musical, building on Phoenix's dancing scenes from the original.

While sharing if the film has psychologically impacted her, she said, "I didn't, really", adding, "I didn't bring her home with me, for sure...you fall in love with the characters that you play," she said. "I always have, anyway." Earlier, in an interview, she talked about playing Ally in 'A Star Is Born' and how long the character stayed back with her, "I wonder how long she'll stay. Or if she'll be in there forever."

In 2022, she dressed as Ally and dyed her hair to match the character. "It's very important to me that when I'm on screen, people don't feel like it's me the whole time. I think that would be very distracting," she said. So Gaga said, "sometimes" she has "had trouble leaving" characters behind. "But I'm in a new place."

Talking about her personal life, Lady Gaga and Michael Polansky, who went public with their relationship in 2020, made their red carpet debut at the Venice Film Festival premiere of 'Joker: Folie a Deux' on September 4."

A few weeks later, they made their relationship public during the Super Bowl weekend in Miami. Gaga confirmed their engagement in July 2024.

The couple kept their engagement private for a few months, telling only close friends and family at first.

The source also mentioned that Gaga and Polansky are now planning their wedding, much to the excitement of their loved ones.

Gaga earlier spoke about her relationship with her fiance Michael Polansky, stating, "I am so happy to be in love, and I'm so excited to have a family, so that's definitely number one. But also, I really believe in the ability to grow as a person," Coming back to the film, 'Joker: Folie a Deux', costarring Brendan Gleeson, Catherine Keener, Leigh Gill, Zazie Beetz, Sharon Washington and Steve Coogan, is in theaters now, reported People.