The Joker and Harley Quinn have often had a love/hate, hard-to-pinpoint relationship in the comics. Sure, they seem to be obsessed with one another, but are either of these two actually capable of love? Their relationship status seems to be in a difficult state in this photo, taken as Jared Leto and Margot Robbie film scenes in character for David Ayer’s Suicide Squad. Take a look:
That’s some gun Harley (Margot Robbie) is wielding in the Instagram post shared by jonencar. And does she have to point it right at Mister J’s head? Normally the Clown Prince would laugh off such a threat, but Jared Leto looks legitimately concerned in the shot. As if he’s about to hear a "shot" go off from that pistol, and it won’t be a flag that says, "Bang" coming out of the barrel.
Now let’s talk about what we are seeing in the photo, because it raises a number of interesting discussion points. Harley, for instance, looks semi-normal. She isn’t wearing her circus-infused outfits, and her hair is a natural blonde. Is she undercover, on some mission? Is this from the early days of Harley Quinn, when she was Dr. Harleen Frances Quinzel, a psychiatrist at Arkham Asylum who treated the Joker, and fell in love with him. It’s possible that Suicide Squad will explore Harley’s early days, which might explain why we see Joker in this state.
What does that mean? Well, rumors were that Jared Leto’s Joker was going to spend the bulk of Suicide Squad behind bars, manipulating the team in a Hannibal Lecter-inspired style. But in this photo (and in a video that was immediately pulled offline), Joker is free and roaming the streets, even driving a stylish purple car with "HAHAHAHA" as his license plate. (A little on-the-nose, but alright, I guess so.)
I need to see The Joker in HD. I’m not sure what to make of Leto’s portrayal yet. I’m sure, in action, it will either be deranged and/or terrifying. But at the moment, I can’t get a grip on what he’s trying to do with the role. More as the movie continues to film. Suicide Squad reaches theaters in August 5, 2016.
