Margot Robbie’s break-out role was as Harley Quinn in the DCEU, debuting in 2016’s Suicide Squad before returning in 2020’s Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn) and 2021’s The Suicide Squad. In between DC flicks, she has steadily risen as one of the most respected actors in Hollywood, receiving Oscar nominations for her roles in I, Tonya, and Bombshell and gaining praise for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and more.
But Harley Quinn was her big break. So how does she feel that the role has been recast for the upcoming Joker sequel Joker: Folie à Deux? Pop star and another Oscar-nominated actor Lady Gaga will star opposite Joaquin Phoenix in that picture, which is set in its own reality and isn’t part of the DCEU. It seems Margot Robbie is A-okay with the change.
While promoting her latest feature Amsterdam, Robbie expressed:
“It makes me so happy because I said from the very beginning, all I want is for Harley Quinn to be one of those characters, the way like Macbeth or Batman always gets passed from great actor to great actor.
“It’s such an honor to have built a foundation strong enough that Harley can now be one of those characters that other actors get to have a go at playing. I think she’ll do something incredible with it.”
(I just kinda love that she used Macbeth and Batman as comparable roles for actors.)
You can watch the video below:
Gaga was nominated for an Oscar for her role as aspiring singer/songwriter Ally in A Star is Born in 2018. While she didn’t win, she did take home a statuette for co-writing and performing the film’s hit single “Shallow.” Most recently, Gaga contributed to the score of this year’s biggest film, Top Gun: Maverick, and provided the pop single “Hold My Hand.” She attempted to take on another awards bait role in House of Gucci but that film landed with a thud.
That mirrors Robbie’s latest effort, Amsterdam, which was directed by David O. Russell and intended to be an awards darling. Unfortunately, critics have given it a thumbs down with a 33% Rotten Tomatoes score.
Margot Robbie will next be seen in another historical Hollywood pic, Babylon, before starring in Wes Anderson’s next dry comedy Asteroid City. She is also attached to an upcoming installment in the Oceans franchise. But her biggest upcoming flick is Barbie, in which she will play the embodiment of the most famous doll in the world. That picture opens on July 21, 2023.
So do you think Harley Quinn as a character has now joined the ranks of Macbeth and Batman? How do you think Gaga’s interpretation in a grittier film will compare to Robbie’s? Let us know in the comments below!
