One of the last people to find out about the coronavirus was actor Jared Leto. The Oscar winner was away on a 12 day meditation in the desert without any technology or outside communication, which is the most Jared Leto thing ever, by the way.
Of course, once he came back to civilization, Leto was met with countless texts from friends and family about the pandemic. And now that he’s caught up, the actor is starting his own quarantine cinema club. With health experts recommending people stay in their homes and practice social distancing, there’s no better time to catch up on some movies, right?
He tweeted last week that the “Jared Leto Cinema Club” would start on Sunday with the John Hughes classic Ferris Buller’s Day Off being the inaugural film. Leto then tweeted several screenshots of the movie as well as various popcorn-eating selfies. He’s yet to announce the second movie in the club, but he’s now taking suggestions.
The online response to the coronavirus from celebrities has been a mixed bag so far. Actress Vanessa Hudgens apologized after posting a video on Instagram where she made light of the virus and its severity and after that, several big names, including Gal Gadot, Kristen Wiig and Will Ferrell, posted videos singing John Lennon’s “Imagine” as some form of unity during the crisis. Fans took it as an out-of-touch post from rich people with no real problems, though, and it sparked a ton of backlash.
But others have been more helpful and proactive. Athletes like Kevin Love and Zion Williamson are covering the salaries of workers at their respective NBA arenas and Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds donated $1 million to two charities, Feeding America and Food Banks Canada.
If a celebrity can do something as big as donating money or helping the less fortunate, more power to them. But something as small as staying home, watching movies and interacting with fans, like Jared Leto is doing, certainly works as well.
