Joker Folie à Deux: Connection to Christopher Nolan's the Dark Knight, Explained

The finale of the movie Joker: Folie à Deux featured a nod to Heath Ledger's Joker from Christopher Nolan 's iconic The Dark Knight. We tell you what it means for Gotham and where to look for it.

Why Did Arthur Refuse to Be the Joker?

At one of the court hearings, Arthur abandoned the Joker image and took responsibility for all the crimes – at the same time confessing to the murder of his mother. He said that he had never been the Joker, but only defended himself with this image. The anarchists themselves created the Joker, and Arthur tried to live up to the character.

All his crimes were impulsive, he did not want to create a criminal movement. The actions of the Arkham guards proved to him that the corruption and cruelty of the authorities – which he had partly fought against – had not disappeared. Believing that he could not change Gotham's indifferent society, Arthur changed his testimony.

The court found Arthur guilty. But unexpectedly, a car exploded near the courthouse. Harley Quinn and other followers of the Joker were likely behind the attack. Arthur escaped from the courthouse and went home – Harley was waiting for him on the very steps where he danced in the first part.

He offered her to escape the town, but she refused. Harley turned away from Arthur because she wanted to be with the Joker, a fictional character created by both Arthur and society. He was eventually captured and returned to Arkham.

Who Killed Arthur and Was It the Real Joker?

In Arkham, one of the guards summoned Arthur to talk to a certain person who wanted to see him. Arthur followed the guard, but in the hallway he was caught by a mysterious psychopathic patient.

The man told Arthur a joke about a psychopath meeting a famous clown in a bar. In the joke, the psychopath was disappointed by the pathetic appearance of the clown, whom he had often seen on television as a child. At the end of the joke, the patient stabbed Arthur several times.

In the scene where Arthur dies, he himself is in the center of attention, and the killer remains in the blurred background. However, it is worth paying attention to the psychopath. He is laughing madly and carving a smile into his face with a knife. This is a reference to the Joker from The Dark Knight, who also had a "carved" smile.

Joker: Folie à Deux Is Connected to The Dark Knight

The original script for the first Joker had Arthur carving such a smile for himself, but Christopher Nolan forbade Warner Bros. from using the idea. By the time Joker: Folie à Deux was made, Nolan was no longer working with the studio, so the reference was played out in the sequel.

Todd Phillips has confirmed that Arthur Fleck is not the DC Comics Joker, Batman 's nemesis. Arthur merely inspired the real Joker to become who we know him to be.

A similar twist occurred in the Gotham series, where the "local" Jokers were twin brothers. Both are believed to have influenced the appearance of the real Joker in Gotham.

Phillips has suggested that in his universe, the Joker will be Arthur's killer. The fact that Arthur's killer's past has not been revealed is in keeping with the spirit of DC Comics, where the identity of the Joker is shrouded in mystery.