Warner Bros.’ Suicide Squad represents a lot of creative risks bundled under one umbrella. Firstly, as a film that will primarily center on villainous characters, the ensemble piece is a significant departure from your average superhero tentpole; plus, considering that it will feature the first cinematic interpretation of The Joker since Heath Ledger’s seemingly insurmountable turn in The Dark Knight back in 2008, there’s a lot eyes on the studio’s upcoming project.
The latter responsibility will rest on the shoulders of Jared Leto, and in a recent interview with Billboard, the musician-cum-actor touched upon his own interpretation of the famed, “Shakespearean” nemesis.
“The opportunity to take on this nearly Shakespearean character — that’s what graphic novels and comic books are becoming, right?” Leto says. “[He’s] this beautiful disaster of a character — what a big challenge.”
Though Leto will no doubt bring his own idiosyncrasies to the role, the personality of The Joker will largely be determined by director David Ayer. Given how Christopher Nolan adopted a more realistic approach for his vision seven years ago, it seems safe to assume that Suicide Squad will depict the villain as he is written in the comics, a larger-than-life baddie.
Speaking of which, during the course of the interview, the outlet also reported that Leto is gaining weight for the role:
“Do you mind if I eat a little? I’m trying to gain a lot of weight. It means I have to eat every couple of hours — and I’m terrible at eating a lot.”
Leto will be joined in the film by Will Smith, Joel Kinnaman, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney and model-turned-actress Cara Delevingne as Enchantress. David Ayer’s Suicide Squad is expected to arrive in theaters on August 5, 2016.
