Todd Phillips explains why he cut Lady Gaga's same-sex kiss from Joker: Folie à Deux

While filming the Joker sequel in March 2023 the pop star was seen walking up courthouse steps and planting a kiss on a female protester, leading many to anticipate the scene in the movie. However, they were left disappointed when they discovered it had been cut from the final edit. Phillips explained to Entertainment Weekly that the kiss no longer worked after he removed dialogue from the scene. "It had dialogue in it, and, all of a sudden, I wanted it to be more of a music and vibe moment. For that moment to have played, it needed dialogue behind it….”