Oscar Winner Jared Leto Set To Play The Joker In New ‘Suicide Squad’ Movie?
In a pretty awesome rumor, it appears that Oscar winner and 30 Seconds to Mars frontman Jared Leto could be playing The Joker soon, according to The Wrap.
The insane clown-like figure is known for being one of Batman’s biggest rivals. However, The Joker has appeared in more than just the Batman universe within the comic book world. It seems that the writers of the new movie Suicide Squad realize this, and want to introduce Joker to their movie. Many thought that Joker would be appearing in the next Batman film, starring Ben Affleck. However, everyone expects Joker to be in a Batman movie… what if you could put him in something else?
Suicide Squad happens to be one of the most interesting comics in the DC Universe. The Squad is made up of villains that are captured by the government. In order for the government to get what they want out of them and for themselves, they force the former bad guys to go into places that seem suicidal to accomplish missions for them. What keeps them from jumping off mission is a remote controlled chip that will allow the government to blow up their heads if they get out of hand.
That means they either do the mission or die. Even in doing the mission, they risk their lives. Thus, the Suicide Squad name. Brilliant idea for a comic, but even better for a potential movie. DC and Warner Bros. feel the same. They know that the Squad is not quite big enough to get attention on name alone. That is why they are trying to bring in major actors like Will Smith and Tom Hardy, both of whom have appeared in superhero movies before.
Obviously, Jared Leto is also a key figure they want to bring in. However, originally there was a rumor that the studio wanted Ryan Gosling to play The Joker character. Apparently, Gosling didn’t want to sign a deal for an option of multiple films… which is pretty much saying we will see The Joker character in other movies with the same guy playing him in all of them. It seems the studio wanted to work with Leto, and now they have a rich opportunity to do so. Leto originally went out for the Doctor Strange role, but Marvel wanted a bigger name. That brought him to DC, where he would get an iconic role potentially.
Leto and Warner Bros. both need this. Warner Bros. needs a great actor to play a marquee role. Meanwhile, a movie such Suicide Squad would put Leto in a major role that would make his name bigger. He wants to get into directing. With a major role like this, he could potentially get some directing roles.
The last time we saw The Joker was in the Chris Nolan’s The Dark Knight. The movie has been rated as one of the best superhero films of all time. The movie was a breakthrough role for Heath Ledger, who played the epic Joker part. Ledger sadly died after filming the role, but he was awarded a Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance. Many believe even if he would not have died, he still would have won.
That means Leto has some big shoes to fill if he does indeed end up in the Suicide Squad film.
What is interesting is that The Joker was not in the original draft for the Suicide Squad movie. Justin Marks, the writer of the screenplay, apparently didn’t want to throw in Joker. However, many think it is needed for the film. That is why David Ayer, the director of the film, is rewriting the screenplay a bit to include him.
Joker’s well-known sidekick, Harley Quinn, is part of the Squad. Wherever Harley is, Joker is usually not too far behind. Cara Delevingne is rumored for the Harley part, which would be interesting.
Warner Bros. first introduced us to the Suicide Squad on the TV series Arrow last season. While we saw several of the members of the team, DC and Warner Bros. were very careful to not reveal Harley, despite giving an indication she was going to be in the series in previews of the episode. That most likely means that Warner Bros. wanted to save this for the movie.
Joker is a key reason why Harley turns out how she does. That being said, Joker is slightly needed for this film. However, what type of role he will have is undetermined. Will he help the team or be a reason for it’s failure? There is a lot to think about. Leto being a great actor could bring this character to life as well as any. While many will think that the bar has been set already with Ledger, and it has… Leto is an Oscar winner in his own right. So he is more than capable of doing a great job.
Many think Suicide Squad will be a fun movie for DC and a big departure from the various Superman and Batman films we have seen far too many over the last three decades. A movie that has never been done in live action would be worthy of the time, and fans will probably flock to this movie like all superhero films. Leto being in the film only adds to the intrigue.
[IMG Credits: The Wrap, comicvine.com, nerdeux.wordpress.com]
