With all the talk about Joaquin Phoenix's Joker movie lately, it might be easy to forget that Jared Leto's Joker is still running around the DC Extended Universe. While it so far doesn't sound like Leto's Joker will reunite with Harley Quinn in Birds of Prey, both characters are expected to appear in Suicide Squad 2 and Gotham City Sirens, as well as an untitled movie centered specifically on the clownish couple. Crazy, Stupid, Love's Glenn Ficarra and John Requa are writing and directing the Joker/Harley movie, and this is not a joke, apparently the duo have included a Dr. Phil cameo in the story. As Ficarra explained:
It is great. The whole thing starts with Harley kidnapping Dr Phil. Played by Dr Phil hopefully. Because her and the Joker are having problems with their relationship.
Of all the celebrity cameos that could have been revealed for a Joker/Harley movie, I definitely wasn't expecting Phil McGraw, but let's roll with it. Although Harley Quinn was originally known for being The Joker's sidekick and love interest, it's no secret that the Clown Prince of Crime treats her horribly, and nowadays in the comics, Harley typically stays far away from him, having finally had enough of his abuse. In the DCEU, Joker and Harley are still an item, but evidently at the start of this movie, Harley thinks their relationship needs some work, hence why she's abducted Dr. Phil. I'm not sure how much help he's going to be, and even worse, I fear what Harley will do to him if he isn't able to help the couple. More importantly, I'm curious if Glenn Ficarra and John Requa would actually be successful in recruiting Dr. Phil for this cameo or if they'd have to create their own TV psychologist character to fill that role.
In their interview with Metro, Glenn Ficarra and John Requa also described their Joker/Harley movie as a mashup between their the TV show This is Us (which they executive produce) and 2003's Bad Santa (which they wrote). Ficarra and Requa have also turned in the Joker/Harley movie script, but they're not sure when or even if it will be translated to the big screen, though Ficarra noted that if Birds of Prey is successful, perhaps their movie will be the next one up. When we last left off with these two in Suicide Squad, Harley Quinn had been thrown back into the Belle Reve prison, but she was broken out by The Joker and his goons. You can be sure they've been up to no good since then, but if this particular movie gets off the ground, their relationship will be put to the test, and unfortunately for Dr. Phil or whichever analogous character is chosen, they'll be drawn into this mess.
We here at CinemaBlend will be sure to keep you updated on this Joker/Harley movie and Dr. Phil's potential involvement with it as more news trickles in, but for now, you can look through our DC movies guide to learn what else is in development for the DCEU.
