Lady Gaga Responds toJoker: Folie à DeuxNegative Reviews: 'People Just Sometimes Don't Like Some Things'

Mar. 15, 2025

Lady Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix in “Joker: Folie à Deux”.Photo:Niko Tavernise

Niko Tavernise

Lady Gagais sharing her perspective onJoker: Folie à Deux’s negative reviews.

In the sequel to the 2019 Oscar-winning film, theA Star Is Bornactress, 38, played Lee, the Harley Quinn toJoaquin Phoenix’s Joker.

After its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in September,Joker: Folie à Deux, a gritty musical courtroom drama, faced a mixed response from critics and fans when it hit theaters in October.

The film currently holds a 31 percent Rotten Tomatoes score, andthe 2025 Razzie Awards picked on it as one of the “worst” moviesof the year and even put Gaga among the “worst actress” category.

In aninterview withELLEpublished Jan. 28, Gaga said, “People just sometimes don’t like some things. It’s that simple.”

“I think to be an artist, you have to be willing for people to sometimes not like it. And you keep going even if something didn’t connect in the way that you intended,” she added.

Todd Phillips, Lady Gaga and Joaquin Phoenix on Sept. 4, 2024.Elisabetta A. Villa/Getty

Elisabetta A. Villa/Getty

The artist — who ispreparing to release her next albumMayhemon March 7 and will star in the upcomingseason of Tim Burton’sWednesday— added that when a fear of failure “makes its way into your life, that can be hard to get control of. It’s part of the mayhem.”

She added at the time, “It’s a testament to [Todd] as a director, that he would rather be creative than just tell a traditional story of love.”

Joaquin Phoenix and Lady Gaga in “Joker: Folie a Deux”.Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc

Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

The firstJokerfilm was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and earned over $1 billion at the global box office. The sequel landed zero Oscar nominations and fizzled with$207 million worldwide.

source: people.com