Random Surprising Facts About Jared Leto (10 items)

(#10) Leto Gave Himself Gout For 'Chapter 27'

Back in 2007, a film called Chapter 27 was released, starring Jared Leto as John Lennon's assassin. The film failed to make waves financially or critically, but that didn't stop Leto from the giving it his all.

In order to portray the real life slaying of the Beatles legend, he put on quite a bit of weight, which resulted in him getting gout. Leto admitted:

Really, it's a stupid thing to do. I got gout, and my cholesterol went up so fast in such a short time that my doctors wanted to put me on Lipitor, which is for much, much older people. Again, though, a fascinating journey.
(#1) He Was Trampled By Fans At A 30 Seconds To Mars Concert

The life of a rock star often comes with some tumultuous situations. Jared Leto got a bit more than he signed up for in 2007, while the star was performing with his band "30 Seconds to Mars."

Midway through the set, Leto made the admittedly ill-advised choice to rush into the crowd, where he was promptly swarmed and trampled by fans. Leto ended up with a broken nose, as well as a few other injuries to show for it.
(#8) He Used Blinded Contact Lenses For 'Blade Runner 2049'

In the long-awaited sequel Blade Runner 2049, Jared Leto plays a character who is blind. While most actors would likely fake the inability to see — or at least wait until the camera is rolling to don a pair of vision-inhibiting contact lenses — Leto is not known for his moderation.

According to director Denis Villeneuve:

He entered the room, and he could not see at all... He was walking with an assistant, very slowly. It was like seeing Jesus walking into a temple. Everybody became super silent, and there was a kind of sacred moment. Everyone was in awe. It was so beautiful and powerful — I was moved to tears. And that was just a camera test!
(#2) He Gave Margot Robbie A Live Rat

The Joker is a role that seems to overtake any actor who attempts a performance. From Nicholson, to Ledger, and Leto, no one is safe from the clown prince of crime. Leto, however, took it to a whole new level, fully committing to the practice of method acting for his role in Suicide Squad.

Among other heinous behavior, this entailed treating co-star Margot Robbie exactly how Mister J would treat his love, Harley Quinn. The harassment culminated with Leto sending Robbie a live rat as a gift. Despite the "romantic" gesture, Robbie didn't keep the rat, instead it resides with filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro.
(#4) He Sent Used Rubbers To His Fellow Cast Members

Along with his mistreatment of Robbie on the set of Suicide Squad, Leto was equally weird with basically all the others members of the cast. Citing his method acting, he thought it'd be a good idea to send the other cast members used rubbers.

Leto claims:

I did a lot of things to create a dynamic, to create an element of surprise, of 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.
(#6) He Yelled At Elijah Wood For Not Liking His Music

Back in 2006, actor Elijah Wood had a less than stellar run-in with the 30 Seconds to Mars singer while at an MTVU awards show. Apparently, Leto wasn't too happy with Wood's opinion of his band, which he had shared in a 2003 issue of Blender, saying "I would never try to be like other actors and attempt to make (music) myself. I mean, have you heard 30 Seconds to Mars? F*cking awful, man!"

"He was basically upset at the fact that I said I didn’t like his band," Wood claims. "He said that initially and then walked away... I guess he thought I was laughing at him, but I was more shell-shocked and telling people around me, 'Whoa, I just got told off by Jared Leto for not liking his band.' And that’s when he came back and grabbed me."

Wood explained that his music tastes weren't person, but apparently, Leto was still offended. Wood thought, "The whole thing was kind of ridiculous."