Jared Leto turned down the role of the Joker. About his childhood idea of ​​stars

On August 4, 2016, the long-awaited film by David Ayer, “Suicide Squad,” based on DC comics, will be released in Russia. The creators have collected in their project about a dozen of the most popular villains from the publisher’s cult graphic novels

On August 4, 2016, the long-awaited film by David Ayer, “Suicide Squad,” based on DC comics, will be released in Russia. The creators have collected in their project about a dozen of the most popular villains from the publisher’s cult graphic novels. The role of the psychopathic Joker in the film was played by American actor Jared Leto. the site found out how the artist worked to create the image of his hero.

Appearance

Jared Leto's portrayal of the Joker is perhaps the most controversial visual interpretation of the antagonist in his entire cinematic history. The artists who created the image of the crazed criminal were guided by the character's depictions in the comics after his redesign by Frank Miller. They also focused on appearance The Joker, played by Heath Ledger in Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight. The actor's body was covered with ominous tattoos, metal crowns were put on his teeth, and his hair was dyed... green color. The artist was also dressed in a gangster costume from the 1920s. In addition, Leto will often appear in the frame wearing only a purple glove. The Joker performed by Jared turned out to be truly frightening - the artist’s colleagues on the set have repeatedly stated that they experienced real horror when looking at Leto in makeup.

Physical form

Before the start of filming, Leto received the task of recruiting muscle mass and then lose weight. According to the filmmakers, the villain should be in excellent physical shape, but look exhausted (after all, the Joker is being released from prison, where he spent the last few years of his life). The task was not easy, but Jared Leto did it. IN original comics The Joker is almost always thin, but muscular. In Suicide Squad, Leto's character will take part in hand-to-hand combat, although he usually fights his opponents with clever traps.

Asylum

Jared Leto, in order to play the Joker as authentically as possible, made a special trip to psychiatric clinic and talked to people who are undergoing treatment there. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the artist said that for his character, violence is the meaning of existence. The Joker truly enjoys being able to control people by causing them pain. The actor also talked with psychiatrists who work in the clinic and treat the most difficult patients. As for communicating with sick people, Jared Leto specifically chose from among all the hospital residents those who had once broken the law and committed a serious crime. According to the artist, the Joker became almost a real person for him.

Crazy gifts

Jared Leto practically did not communicate with his colleagues on the project outside the image of the Joker. He often went home from filming without removing his makeup to continue working on creating the character in his own way. free time. The actor, on behalf of the Joker, has repeatedly sent crazy gifts to his associates. The actors involved in the film reacted to these antics of Leto with understanding. His colleagues were well aware that this was just his way of working, but nevertheless, according to them, it was truly creepy. One day Leto sent Australian actress Margot Robbie, who plays Harley Quinn, received a letter with a love message, to which was attached a package with a live rat inside. Jared's acquaintance with the other actors in the project took place as follows: his assistant walked into the rehearsal room without a word and without a word threw a pork carcass on the table. After this, Leto appeared in the room as the Joker. The artist also sent contraceptives and sex toys to his friends. Jared himself said in an interview that he wanted to achieve a sense of spontaneity with such behavior, which would allow him to destroy all boundaries between him and the film crew, because his hero Joker has absolutely no respect for other people's personal space.

Today - about Jared Leto as the Joker.

Billion money
Suicide Squad will certainly collect their billion American money. Moreover, he is not as bad as DC haters write about him. Unfortunately, most The film was re-shot to add humor to the film. And this damn desire to please Marvel fans also led to nothing. The film was eventually remade, but all the classic complaints about superhero films and the DC Extended Universe remained. The film is dark, gloomy and a little stupid. The special effects are cool, but you can see from the picture that they are sometimes done clumsily. And all these flashbacks with the backstories of the characters... I was afraid that the film would not have enough time to develop them. But it turned out that, on the contrary, they spent too much time on the tearful backstories, but somehow to no avail. The two hours of the film flew by quickly, but apparently a lot of scenes were cut to fit the film into the required timing. And they obviously cut out something wrong, since the film is oversaturated with interchangeable symbolism. And they tell us the same thing several times.

There is a lot of good music in the film, and although it does not always combine with each other, it perfectly emphasizes what is happening in the frame.
“You Don’t Own Me” for Harley Winn’s exit, “House of the Rising Sun” for the part with the prison in Louisiana, “Spirit in the Sky” for the scene with the helicopter. And somewhere else there was Paranoid. Probably for the Joker.

Nevertheless, I liked the film, and you will already find thousands of bad reviews for it. I want to talk about Jared Leto as the Joker.

Summer is the worst Joker
For a whole year, one of the most talked about appointments in cinema was the news that Jared Leto would play the role of the Joker. This is a very difficult task, especially considering that before him the role of the Joker was played by absolutely brilliant actors: Heath Ledger and Jack Nicholson. And so it happened.

Jared Leto didn't just disappear into the role. He is at whole year stopped being Jared Leto. Leto himself became the Joker. He sent his co-stars live rats, bullets, pig heads. Well, also used condoms and anal beads. He has such a hell of a character, guys. In one of the interviews, he even mentioned that after filming he would probably be locked in a box, fearing how much he got used to the role.

"It was fun playing these psychological games. But at the same time it’s very painful, like giving birth to a baby from a penis.” Jared Leto said in an interview with Empire magazine.

“If the Joker were giving an interview, he would definitely castrate the journalist and make him eat his own testicles. Just for fun. Just because he liked you". Jared Leto to Rolling Stone magazine.

So, given his borderline stalkerish attitude towards his co-stars, and all the trouble he caused on set, Jared Leto had to be damn cool, incredibly cool, and make the whole movie, right? Yes, but he didn't play that well. Don't get me wrong - Summer good actor, I am very impressed with him in “Mr. Nobody”, Dallas Buyers Club”, and many other places. But his role in “Suicide Squad” is similar to Eisenberg’s work in “Batman v Superman” - every step he takes is suffered, every grimace and movement is verified and calculated. It's obvious that he's trying to be better than Hit Ledger, but Leto's performance does not evoke such a sense of anxiety, fear and impending threat. He's about as scary as a fifth grader making faces in front of the mirror.

He doesn't transport the viewer to the other side of the screen like his character should. Like Heath Ledger or Nicholson did. But he probably thought he could do it. When you watch On the Waterfront (1954), what you see on the screen is not Marlon Brando, but Terry Maloy, whom he plays. Or in Raging Bull (1980), you completely forget that you are watching Robert De Niro - Jake LaMotta will forever remain in your memory. But you won’t be able to forget for even a second that in “Suicide Squad” you are looking at Jared Leto, dressed as the Joker and delivering lines from the script. And even these attempts will be painful.

Plus, his role is strangely short and pointless. Considering how much printing ink was spent on it. The Joker only appears in a few scenes, and almost all of those scenes involve Margot Robbie, which led to some nasty trolling from the rest of the cast. And this discrepancy between the amount of screen time and attention to the person of Jared Leto served as a catalyst for inflating his own ego. And it seems that all the hype around him was just marketing. These are all his quotes from interviews about how making the film was so difficult for him.

But ultimately, it's up to the audience to decide. And I’m interested in your opinion regarding Jared Leto’s performance in this film - be sure to write it in the comments.

As for the rest of the actors, Will Smith playing Deadshot is good as always. Only harsher than usual. He makes sure that “Suicide Squad” has at least some semblance of a full-fledged film, a few burns and even a couple of heartfelt moments. Viola Davis, who plays Amanda Waller, is damn good, to say the least. Well, Margot Robbie - Harley Quinn - is a goddess, of course. Crazy, provoking the heroes into jokes. A bright spot in the parade of dudes.

All these actors are good, charismatic and merge with the characters into a whole.
Unlike Jared Leto, who could have found something better to do than be an ass for a year.

For a movie role, Jared Leto is ready to do a lot - he can easily get rid of all the hair on his body, gain 30 kg, lose 14 kg and sacrifice his health. However, this time the actor approached the task even more thoroughly and did not leave the image of the Joker even outside the set. The consequences of Leto's crazy preparation for the role of a supervillain were felt by his co-stars.

Followed drug lords on Instagram

According to Suicide Squad director David Ayer, the Joker's tattoos and teeth are another interesting story. Moreover, each tattoo appeared on his body for a specific reason. For the hero to fit into modern reality, Eyre and Leto followed the Instagram accounts of Mexican drug lords.

There they posted photos of girls in bikinis with grenade launchers, huge tigers near private pools and gilded AK-47 next to Gucci bags. This was the world the Joker was supposed to live in, and Leto decided to follow the same lifestyle. And if Heath Ledger's Joker burns a lot of money, then in Leto's version he is more interested in a good and beautiful life.

“Many moments helped create a character with a history and traces of activity in our world. This happened in the Joker's past too. In some versions of the comics, the Joker and Harley Quinn actually owned hyenas,” Eyre noted.

Instilled terror around the clock

Film sets can be scary enough, but with Leto as the Joker, it was even more sinister. The role of Batman's nemesis is shrouded in many legends, and Ledger made an indelible impression on audiences in this role. Watching a supervillain is fun, but playing one is more exciting.

Scott Eastwood constantly kept his distance from Leto, and Will Smith noted that during six months of continuous filming, he “never saw Jared Leto, because he did not leave the character even after the command “Stop!” Cut!” Leto devoted himself entirely to the game. The director noted that when he walked onto the set, he looked so terrifying that even the birds stopped flying.

Spent some time in a mental hospital

The new Joker's forehead is decorated with a "Damaged" tattoo. And as if to confirm this, Leto spent some time in a psychiatric hospital. There he met with patients who had been undergoing treatment for a long time.

The actor met with people who “committed heinous crimes and have been in the hospital for a long time.” These are the kind of madmen the Joker could choose as his accomplices in Arkham Asylum. In words, such visits may seem like a simple school experiment, but this impression is deceptive.

Spending time with real crazy people and their doctors is not the best useful activity. This may affect state of mind a person and exhausts him very quickly. However, Leto has enough stamina and endurance for such a pastime. “The Joker reaps enormous rewards from violence and manipulation,” he noted.

Hired an assistant

For all the jokes and pranks of the Suicide Squad cast, the actor hired assistants, since he himself distanced himself from any connections with his colleagues. Of course, it wasn't the man in the Panda suit who did all the dirty work for him. Although it could very well be Johnny Frost played by Jim Parrack. Viola Davis, who played Amanda Waller, confirmed that it was Leto’s assistants who implemented all the strange ideas. And often they had to do ridiculous things.

Gave his colleagues a dead pig

IN " Godfather“There are many moments that have already become classics. However, none of them were as memorable as the one when the head of a film studio finds a bloody horse's head in his bed. They say that echoes of that scream can still be heard in Hollywood.

While filming Suicide Squad, Leto decided to improve on this idea. During one of the rehearsals, his assistant placed the head of a dead pig on the table. For something like this, members of the organization PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) could definitely take up arms against him.

Without a doubt, such a strange gesture immediately attracted everyone's attention. According to Davis, he placed the animal's head on the table with due carelessness. This incident occurred at the beginning of filming and was the first in a series of strange behavior. Leto did not comment on such a gift, but admitted that he had fun with these psychological games.

Sent Margot Robbie a live rat as a gift

Before filming Suicide Squad, Jared Leto and Margot Robbie had never worked together. However, this did not stop Leto from building their relationship according to the comics and meeting her in his own style at film set. The relationship between Harley Quinn and the Joker can hardly be called normal, but mutual love to violence and sadism makes their union ideal.

While some members of the cast were having dinner and enjoying drinks, Leto presented his movie lover with a live rat as a “romantic” gift. And along with her love letter. The rodent Venustiano immediately became the team's favorite, and is now rumored to live with Guillermo del Toro in Toronto.

And Will Smith - bullets

Deadshot is the best shooter in the universe DC. And he also received his gift from the Joker - a box of bullets. Given his prowess with rifles and pistols, this choice is not surprising.However, Will Smith is used to separating life and work, and they say he was shocked when this package was delivered to his home in Los Angeles. He had received strange gifts from fans before, but this one was understandably cause for concern.

Viola Davis also received a box of bullets. She noted that she was cautious about meeting Leto after filming ended, when he was no longer in the role of the Joker. “As a child, I got into fights several times. But it scared me a little. I’m almost out of my pepper spray,” she commented. Many media outlets wrote about this case.

Recorded video messages for the film crew

Pre-recorded video messages Jokers are not something new or original. IN " The Dark Knight"they were successfully used to infuriate the Gotham police and call Batman is worried.

But that's not all - you can send similar videos to the cast and crew of the film. During the filming of Suicide Squad, Leto did not participate in general parties, but recorded a special video for them.

According to Adam Beach, who played Slipknot, Leto first appeared as the Joker in the video. He said something like, “Guys, I can’t be with you, but I want to tell you that I work just as hard as you.” Hopefully fans will be able to see the treatment in the Blu-ray version of the film.

Came out as the Joker during a 30 Seconds to Mars concert

In addition to successful film roles and filming in “Dallas Buyers Club”, “Fight Club”, “American Psycho” and “Requiem for a Dream”, since 1998 Jared Leto has been the lead singer of the American rock band 30 Seconds to Mars.

And while preparing for the role of the Joker in 2015, Leto came out in this image in the middle speeches in Novosibirsk. Fans appreciated his neon green hair and other elements of the image, and also heard the signature voice of the supervillain.

Slept in prison

“When you leave, close the door behind you. I'm staying here tonight." This is roughly what Leto could have said to the prison guards where he decided to spend the night. The Joker spent a lot of time behind bars, so when the actor was preparing for the role, he decided to also experience this place.

According to stories, after finishing filming in the prison, Leto asked the director and other members film crew lock him in the basement, hide the keys and leave him alone for the night. Fortunately, the CCTV cameras did not record everything that might have happened in the prison cell.

Responded only to "Mr. Jay"

There are many stories about strange behavior famous actors on the set. It was important for Leto to create an environment that would help him get into the role of the Joker. During filming, he ignored when addressed by his first or last name and responded only to "Mr. J." This immediately solved several problems - he was constantly in character, and other members of the film crew, even during his absence, felt the actor’s presence on the set.

Distanced from the film crew

David Ayer can hardly be called an ordinary director. He served in the US Navy and was a member of the crew of a submarine, which served as the basis for writing the script. war drama"Yu-571".

Before filming began on Suicide Squad, he forced all the actors to fight among themselves. “You learn a lot about a person when you punch them in the face. This helps get rid of a lot of problems,” he noted. Jared Leto did not participate in these hand-to-hand battles, but was in his own closed world.

This is what the actor himself wanted, and Eyre agreed without hesitation. Such isolation was supposed to bring the detachment closer together and turn it into a coherent military unit. In addition, she also added mysticism to Leto's look.

Sent Playboy magazine to Killer Croc

After the actors received the dead pig's head, they immediately sent the gift back and also added their message. According to Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who played the killer Croc, such a present rallied the team against the Joker.

But for The gifts didn't stop there for Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who received a set of Playboy magazines coated in an unknown viscous substance. In addition, Leto sent the cast anal beads, which further confirmed the Joker's lack of sense of decency.

And the rest of my colleagues - used condoms

The Suicide Squad cast received another extravagant gift from Leto: used condoms. Screenwriter Danny Bowes called it "a misunderstanding of what characterization is and how it should happen."

It remains a mystery where the actor got them and why he gave them. However, some actors expressed dissatisfaction and spoke out against such actions. So, Rose McGowan on her Facebook advised filing a lawsuit, because in no other area would such behavior be approved.

Viola Davis noted that if her husband saw this gift, Leto would have to answer for it. Most of his colleagues calmly accepted the actor's pranks, and Margot Robbie even expressed delight at what he was doing with his character.

Practiced your laugh in front of everyone

The Joker's laugh is always something special. Before Leto, this image was embodied on screen by Jack Nicholson, Mark Hamill and Heath Ledger. Therefore, he needed to add something new to the gloating and mischief in the supervillain’s voice.

In an attempt to achieve perfection, the actor resorted to complete madness. If you heard a strange and monstrous laugh somewhere on the streets of New York or Toronto between 2014 and 2016, it was most likely Jared Leto.

The actor admitted that he often went out onto the streets of an American city in order to practice Joker's laugh. And the more unexpected and aggressive he got, the better. Leto worked on himself until his voice took over the thoughts of those around him and began to irritate them.

Those fans who have already watched Suicide Squad may have been unpleasantly surprised that the Joker appears in the film for just a couple of minutes. But all the film’s trailers promised something completely different.

This was another result of numerous disagreements between studio bosses and the director that arose during the filming process.

Jared Leto, who embodied the next incarnation of the Joker in the film, complained that many scenes with his participation were not included in the final cut, reports The Hollywood Reporter. The actor also expressed hope that someday “these materials will see the light of day.”

Suicide Squad director and screenwriter David Ayer has also previously been forced to make excuses about the film's failure to live up to expectations.

"Just because some things turned out great doesn't mean they'll make it into the final cut," the director said, adding that he left almost 10 minutes of the film on the cutting room floor.

Excess footage is common when making a major blockbuster. But in in this case Rather, it could be that everyone is trying to put a good face on a bad game.

It's no secret that Suicide Squad was generally well received by audiences. But Western critics spoke quite clearly. The film only has a 27% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But particularly zealous fans have already created a petition online demanding that Rotten Tomatoes be closed for such an unfriendly attitude towards the film.

Insiders say the "uneven" and choppy plot that the film is most often blamed for was the result of the studio and director being unable to agree on what kind of movie they were making. Inconsistency plagued the film at all stages of its creation, the portal writes.

The studio announced the project in 2014. The producers believed that this time was enough to get everything done. As a result, David Ayer wrote the script in just six weeks, and sources say "it was quite a race."

Also, in an attempt to save money, the studio hired a director who had not previously dealt with blockbusters and huge budgets. Apparently, the bosses hoped that Eyre would “figure it out as the play progresses.” We've already seen both successful examples of this approach (Colin Trevorrow's Jurassic World) and catastrophic failures (Josh Trank's Fantastic Four).

"Suicide Squad" was originally conceived as an extremely dark and gritty movie. And the studio - it seemed - also agreed with this vision. But everything changed after the failure of Batman v Superman, which was most often reproached for its brutal seriousness and lack of humor. The producers quickly began re-editing the film with the help of Trailer Park, the company responsible for creating promotional videos for the film. At this time, the director continued to work on the “serious” version of “The Squad,” also changing editors like gloves.

In May, test screenings were held, at which the public was shown a “light” version of the studio and the director’s “heavyweight”. After analyzing the reviews for both options, it turned out that the fun madness is closer to the fans. But reshoots were required huge money and a lot of time, so the director and producers ultimately decided to leave “something in between.” Judging by many reviews, they turned out to be “something average.”

However, the opinions of critics increasingly mean nothing to those who vote with their wallets. So far, the film's collections are far from a failure and are confidently moving towards the top of the box office in many countries.

Jared Leto - famous all over the world American actor, the vocalist of the group 30 STM, the adoration of girls and women of all ages, took part in the film by David Ayer called “Suicide Squad”. The film is based on comic books published by DC. And Jared himself played the role of everyone famous Joker! Others also starred in the film famous actors like: Tom Hardy, Will Smith and world-famous model Cara Delevingne.

When rumors of a new Joker were confirmed, endless debate began on the Internet regarding Jared's participation. Fans of films and comics were divided into two camps - some were glad to see Leto in the film, while others were categorically against it and could not understand why this particular actor was entrusted with such a character.

However, the filmmakers are convinced that everyone will enjoy new Joker. Actor Ryan Gosling was also invited to play the role of the villain, but he refused, arguing that he did not want to sign a long-term contract with the company.

Undoubtedly, the new Joker will be radically different from the one everyone is used to. Jared himself says that he is quite interested in trying himself in such a role. A street rebel, a crazy guy, that’s what the actor himself is. To create his image, most of the details were taken from the comics themselves - green hair, a cheeky grin, silver teeth, rings and an endless number of tattoos on his body. It is possible that such an image will become a new canon and style icon.

It was also easy for Jared to take on the Joker's character. Like the comic book hero, Summer will be crazy, fun, scary, but also attractive at the same time. After all, everyone knows that most often negative heroes With their crazy behavior and appearance, they evoke a storm of emotions and great sympathy among the audience.

Curious: About Shailene Woodley's novels.

The actor himself tried to get as close as possible to his hero. Throughout filming, Jared did not leave the image of the Joker. Some on the set were even frightened, seeing the angry and cocky Jared even outside the frame. He sent strange and terrifying messages to his co-stars, and even sent actress Margot Robbie a live rat.

“Those were crazy days. I was so deeply immersed in this role that it is impossible to describe, but I cannot imagine how it could be done any other way. This was a great opportunity and an invaluable experience for me and I am very happy to have been chosen for this role. It was quite fun playing such a complex psychological role. But on the other hand, it was terrible and painful, as if something living was destroyed in me,” says the actor.

At one of the concerts, he admitted that he was really looking forward to the premiere of the film and joked that after watching it, he might be isolated from society and locked in a cage. He also thanked all his fans who supported and believed in him during filming.

Interesting: photos of Angelina Jolie's children.

Despite the controversy over the casting, the film promises to be enchanting. According to forecasts, the new Joker will be much crazier and more terrible than the usual one. Jared tried to give it his all. And there is no doubt that he will cope with this task perfectly. He has a considerable number of roles in films: “Alexander”, “Girl, Interrupted”, “Mr. Nobody”, “Dallas Buyers Club”, “Requiem for a Dream” and others. Moreover, Leto is an Oscar and Golden Globe award winner.