A lot has been said about Jared Leto’s performance as The Joker. Some negative,some positive and some that are just plain absurd.The Joker is Batman’s most infamous nemesis after all,with many interpretations already been made in film and animation,fans have been lucky to witness some great performances by really talented actors.Jack Nicholson does a very campy maniacal take,while Heath Ledger put a dark psychopathic spin, while Mark Hamill’s distinctive voice has been a constant for fans in the animated series.So Leto had very big shoes to fill no matter how you looked at it.
“I have had many challenging roles – but The Joker was challenging in a different way because of all the expectation and the pressure that came with it…There’s so much great work done.Heath Ledger, Jack Nicholson, Mark Hamill, Cesar Romero – all these people have done such great, powerful work so there’s a lot of pressure – a responsibility – to deliver something that was adequate and not to let people down.” Leto has said.
Leto famously went method while shooting for Suicide Squad,even gifting furry critters to his castmates.On this Leto commented:
“You say goodbye to your friends and family when you make a movie like this. I do whatever needs to be done to get to where I need to go. There was a great responsibility to deliver the very best I could and that meant being as focused and as committed as possible. So all the other things that people made busy with themselves – I shut them all out,”
It might seem like an extreme take,given into account that Heath Ledger famously went into a deep depression after he finished shooting The Dark Knight and died from an overdose of sleeping pills.But Leto seems to have a grip on when to shut off from his character.
“I worked the hardest I could, worked as brave as I could be and that’s all I can ask of myself,” he says.
When asked of fans and critics feedback on the internet and social media, Leto adamantly admitted that he does not read them.The actor has been quoted as saying:
“No, no, no. Why would I do that? It’s like eating my own vomit. You can’t read about yourself on the Internet.”
