A sequel to the Oscar-winning psychological thriller "Joker," based on one of the world's most famous comic book villains, is scheduled for release on October 4, 2024, according to a Warner Bros. spokeswoman on Wednesday.

According to a studio spokeswoman, "Joker: Folie a Deux" will have Joaquin Phoenix reprising his role as the titular character, which garnered him the Academy Award for best actor in the original 2019 picture telling the origin tale of the archenemy of DC Comics superhero Batman.

The 2019 film, nominated for an Oscar for best picture and won for best original score and best lead actor, was directed, produced, and co-written by Todd Phillips and Scott Silver.

The plot followed the psychological decline of the film's protagonist, a failed party clown and want-to-be comedian Arthur Fleck, and the social forces that transformed him from a sad loner into a cold-blooded killer who inspires a wave of violence in the fictional metropolis of Gotham City.

Warner Bros. instantly provided no additional information regarding the sequel. Variety, a Hollywood trade journal, reports that the new production will be a musical, with Lady Gaga cast as Harley Quinn, Joker's co-conspirator.

Phoenix, 47, renowned for portraying moody or emotionally damaged characters, received widespread recognition for a performance many film critics hailed as one of the most unsettling and distressing in contemporary cinema.

He was the second actor to win an Oscar for portraying the Joker, following in the footsteps of Heath Ledger, who won the Oscar for best supporting actor for his portrayal of the character in "The Dark Knight." in 2008.