Venice Film Festival lineup includes ‘Joker 2,’ films with Pitt, Clooney, Jolie, more

AP Film Writer

Five years after “Joker” won the top prize at the Venice Film Festival, filmmaker Todd Phillips is returning with the sequel. “Joker: Folie à Deux” will play in competition with 20 other titles, festival organizers said Tuesday. The highly anticipated follow-up to the blockbuster comic book film stars Joaquin Phoenix as the mentally ill Arthur Fleck and Lady Gaga as Harley Quinn. The lineup for the 81st edition of the festival, unveiled early Tuesday, also includes new films starring Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Angelina Jolie, Nicole Kidman, Daniel Craig and Jude Law. The 81st edition kicks off on August 28, with “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.”