‘Joker 2’ Axed Scene of Lady Gaga’s Lee Kissing a Woman at the Courthouse Because ‘It Had Dialogue in It’ and ‘Got in the Way’ of a Music Moment

variety.com:

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Many fans of Lady Gaga have expressed disappointment on social media following the release of “Joker: Folie à Deux” as it appears a few scenes Gaga shot for the film did not end up making it into the final theatrical cut.

One axed moment was improvised during filming and depicted Gaga’s Lee kissing another woman while entering the courthouse to attend Arthur Fleck’s murder trial.

Photos of the kiss were taken by paparazzi and spread online during the filming of the “Joker” sequel. “Joker: Folie à Deux” director Todd Phillips told Entertainment Weekly that he had to cut the scene of Lee kissing a woman outside of the courthouse because it distracted from the musicality of the sequence.

Lee is doing a song and dance number as she walks up the courthouse steps, so the kissing moment would’ve required the music to be disrupted by dialogue. “It had dialogue in it, and, all of a sudden, I wanted it to be more of a music and vibe moment,” Phillips said of cutting the moment. “For that moment to have played, it needed dialogue behind it.