Jared Leto Says “Never Say Never” To A Return As The Joker
JB Augustine
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Suicide Squad actor Jared Leto’s chances of reprising his character in that film, The Joker, have arguably never been lower with two new Jokers played by Joaquin Phoenix and Barry Keoghan cornering the market in the DC multiverse.
Source: The Killing Joker by Alan Moore and Brian Bolland, DC Comics
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In case you’re late to the party, yes, that is Eternals star Keoghan at the end of The Batman in shadow within an Arkham cell, and he is supposed to be The Clown Prince of Crime. But, I digress.
Leto’s performance in the 2016 Suicide Squad we got, as cut together by Warner Bros., may leave you less inclined to see Leto back with green hair and red lipstick. However, his chilling makeover in Zack Snyder’s Justice League won some of the doubters over.
Source: Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021), Warner Bros.
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According to Leto and Suicide Squad director David Ayer, we were going to see more of the latter example on the screen if WB had left Ayer’s cut alone and released it.
There is still potential the Ayer Cut could see the light of day, albeit fleeting, and it might gin up a demand to restore Leto’s Joker with the rest of the Snyderverse. But the question remains if the actor wants to return at all.
Source: Suicide Squad (2016), Warner Bros.
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As of press time, he is keeping the door open. “Never say never,” he told Variety recently. Leto added too that he has an attachment to Joker and all characters he plays to some degree.
“For me, they’re like living, breathing people,” he said. “I know they’re not, of course, but I get attached. It’s a shame to never do it again.”
Source: Suicide Squad (2016), Warner Bros. Pictures
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That he feels that way makes sense when allegedly Leto wanted to do everything in his power to “throttle” and cancel Todd Phillips’ Joker when it was announced. Of course, the film went forward and made a lot of money, winning accolades along the way in 2019.
Shortly thereafter, Zack Snyder managed to give Leto his interpretation of Batman’s merciless archenemy back. “It was a secret I had to keep for so long, it feels funny to even talk about it,” Leto explained in an Entertainment Tonight interview.
Source: Suicide Squad (2016), Warner Bros. Pictures
“[Snyder] knows that world like nobody else… He cares so deeply about the character,” he continued. “He cares so much about the fans. I was happy to be a part of his journey and retelling that story and telling it the way that he always dreamed of. And it was fun to dip my toe into the character again.”
Leto jumped to the Marvel Universe via Sony’s Spider-verse in the interim to tackle Morbius the Living Vampire. After multiple delays, we shall finally see if this ersatz Lost Boy has bite on April 1st.
Dr. Michael Morbius (Jared Leto) in Columbia Pictures’ MORBIUS.
What do you say? Leto Joker, no, or Leto Joker, yes? Choose and explain your choice down below.
NEXT: Jared Leto Clarifies Story He Gave a Dead Rat to Margot Robbie While Filming Suicide Squad
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