Jared Leto met psychopaths for Suicide Squad

Jared Leto spent time with psychopaths who had committed "horrendous crimes" to prepare for his role as the Joker. The 44-year-old actor will take on the role of the supervillain in upcoming superhero movie 'Suicide Squad' and pulled out all the stops to ensure his version of the character was suitably complex. Talking about his research, he said: "[I met] people that were experts, doctors, psychiatrists that dealt with psychopaths and people who had committed horrendous crimes ... I spent some time with those people themselves, people who have been institutionalised." Jared remained in character throughout the filming process and was determined his version of the Joker would go in a "different direction" to that of the late Heath Ledger's portrayal in 2008 motion picture 'The Dark Knight', and Jack Nicholson's version in 1989's 'Batman'. He added to Entertainment Weekly: "There had been such great work that we knew we had to go in a different direction." He recently said: "I did a lot of things to create a dynamic to create an element of surprise, a spontaneity, and to really break down any kind of walls that may be there. The Joker is somebody who doesn't really respect things like personal space or boundaries." Will Smith - who plays expert marksman Deadshot - added: "He went full Joker. He really set the tone. He wasn't playing with it. He was dead serious as an actor. He was going in and he was 100 per cent going into this character." Margot Robbie, Joel Kinnaman, Viola Davis and Jai Courtney are also set to star in the movie.

More from Entertainment

  • Dubai Culture signs landmark agreement with Spotify

    In the presence of Her Highness Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Chairperson of Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), the Authority has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Spotify to strengthen collaboration across the music and creative sectors.

  • Melania Trump to preview new film at private White House screening

    First lady Melania Trump will host a private White House screening on Saturday of a new film documenting her life in the 20 days leading up to President Donald Trump’s second inauguration, an adviser said.

  • Vampire thriller 'Sinners' leads all Oscar nominees with 16 nods

    Vampire thriller “Sinners” stormed into Oscars history on Thursday with a record 16 nominations, positioning the Warner Bros film as the frontrunner for best picture and pitting star Michael B. Jordan against Timothee Chalamet and Leonardo DiCaprio as rivals for best actor.

  • Justin Baldoni urges judge to toss Blake Lively's lawsuit

    A lawyer for actor Justin Baldoni has urged a federal judge on Thursday to dismiss actor Blake Lively's lawsuit stemming from their 2024 movie "It Ends with Us,” saying her harassment and retaliation case was built on “petty slights.”

  • Taylor Swift named to Songwriters Hall of Fame

    Taylor Swift, 36, will become the second-youngest songwriter ever inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, joining the ranks of Stevie Wonder, who was 33 when he was inducted in 1983, the organization announced on Wednesday.

News