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Warning: The following article contains spoilers for Joker 2.
For all the controversy surrounding Joker: Folie à Deux, we have to hand it to Todd Phillips. The second entry to the Joker franchise was rather unexpected.
The title of the Joker sequel translates to madness shared by two, but that doesn’t even begin to describe the follow-up film. The first movie already takes DC continuity with a grain of salt. Instead of steeping the Crown Prince of Crime in mystery that he is famous for in the comics, Joker takes a hardlined approach to his backstory. Joaquin Phoenix plays Arthur Fleck, a disenfranchised man living with mental illness. The film can hardly be called Batman-adjacent, even when Thomas and Bruce Wayne make appearances. Joker is really a film that shows that the horribly cruel women in Arthur’s life are the reason for his unhappiness, so he may as well burn the whole world down. But whether the Joker’s crimes are because of aggressively misogynistic undertones, or the dance sequence of a convicted sex offender, Joker 2 doesn’t follow the same path — and almost for worse.
Joker 2 instead focuses on Arthur’s romance with fellow Arkham inmate, Harley Quinn, who just goes by Lee in the film. Portrayed by Lady Gaga, Lee turns out to be another woman who lies to Arthur. But that isn’t how the film ends. Instead of following down her road of delusional behavior, Arthur disconnects himself from the Joker persona only to meet a grisly end by the film’s conclusion.
Who is Young Inmate in Joker 2?
After the monumental mistake of representing himself in court, Arthur goes to prison only to be brutally stabbed by another inmate. Credited only as “Young Inmate,” there are many theories surrounding this character. Phillips has been upfront about hanging up his Joker hat, but many have been wondering whether Young Inmate is the real Joker. Could Arthur Fleck only be a precursor to the famous Batman villain? And if so, is the Young Inmate the one to challenge the Dark Knight? It may be some time before these questions get answered — if ever — but viewers do know who filled the shoes of this new character.
Young Inmate is played by Connor Storrie, whose few minutes of screen time flipped the entire movie on its head. Fans going into the Joker sequel may have been under the impression that they would get another pandering and half-baked villain story. But instead of a rallying cry, Arthur Fleck goes out with a whimper. Storrie has had few credits in shorts and independent films. But a role in a film that inspires heated discourse may give the actor traction in the entertainment industry. At the very least, he got to share a climactic scene with Oscar winner Joaquin Phoenix. Against all odds, the Joker sequel succeeded in keeping Batman continuity intact. This ending posits that the Joker we know from the comics may have yet to come out, leaving Matt Reeves’ The Batman safe from outside influences.