Among the many divisive elements of David Ayer's SUICIDE SQUAD, many fans of DC Comics' "worst of the worst" found that Jared Leto's Joker did little to put a smile on their face. I feel you. While I appreciated Leto's attempt to present a new and extreme take on the character, I'd found myself unable to connect with the painted gangster's appearance and breathy vocals. That being said, there are still plenty of people who enjoyed Leto's take, mainly the actor himself, who in a recent interview spot for Variety and iHeart's new film podcast “The Big Ticket” said that he would "definitely" entertain the opportunity to once again suit up as the Clown Prince of Crime.
“I would definitely play the Joker again,” Leto said on the podcast, which had been recorded at the Tribeca Film Festival for the premiere of his new documentary A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AMERICA. “It all depends on the script and the circumstances as it always does,” the BLADE RUNNER 2049 actor added.
In recent times, there have been rumors circulating that Leto will have guest roles in both James Gunn's THE SUICIDE SQUAD as well as Cathy Yan's BIRDS OF PREY (AND THE EMANCIPATION OF ONE HARLEY QUINN), though when asked about the appearances, Leto said, “I don’t think so. You’d have to ask them.” Shortly thereafter, he added, "Well, we'll see."
Oh snap! Could you imagine if the Joker tries to crash Harley's upcoming film? I know that he love for the Jester of Genocide is a long and winding downward spiral, but I don't think that she'd be too keen on him showing up to her girl's night out. In fact, he'd better hope that Harley doesn't sic her pet hyenas, Bud and Lou, on his juggler's balls, if you know what I mean.
As their talk continued, Leto remarked about how playing the yin to Batman's yang was something of a childhood dream come true by saying, “When I was a kid, I remember being at my grandmother’s house in Louisiana and the original OG would come on and just being pretty transfixed as some many of us were when we saw that,” Leto said. “And then the Anne Rice era was big for my brother and I. We passed those books around to each other.”
Currently, Leto is in the process of filming MORBIUS for Marvel and Sony in which he'll play Michael Morbius, the Living Vampire. According to the Marvel Database, Morbius is afflicted with a “debilitating blood disease and developed an experimental treatment involving vampire bats and electroshocks. Its side effects turned him into a pseudo-vampire who needed to consume blood in order to survive, and gained typical vampire characteristics such as an aversion to sunlight, and the powers of flight, enhanced strength, speed, and healing (a healing factor). His overall appearance changed as well: he gained fangs, his nose flattened to appear more bat-like, and his skin became extremely pale. Additionally, the victims of his bite would turn into living vampires themselves.”
While we'll have to wait and see if Leto's Joker returns for DC's slate of upcoming superhero/villain features, you'll be able to catch the 30 Seconds to Mars frontman in MORBIUS in theaters on July 31, 2020.