Jared Leto has revealed that the risky gifts he previously sent to his ‘Suicide Squad’ castmates were in the "spirit of fun." Leto starred as ‘The Joker’ in David Ayer's 2016 film and later reprised that role in Zack Snyder's ‘Justice League’ in 2021. Despite its star-studded cast, which included the likes of Margot Robbie, Will Smith, Viola Davis, Joel Kinnaman, Cara Delevingne, and even a Ben Affleck Batman cameo, the general consensus towards ‘Suicide Squad’ wasn't particularly positive. The film has since gone on to receive a soft reboot, ‘The Suicide Squad,’ helmed by ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ franchise director James Gunn. ‘The Suicide Squad’ released earlier this year with a handful of the original cast returning, sans Leto.
Read more: Leto says risky ‘Suicide Squad’ cast gifts were just a joke
Leto's casting as The Joker sparked debate immediately after it was announced, with many fans curious as to whether the actor could pull off the iconic character. After all, Leto would be the first actor the take on the highly-coveted role as the Clown Prince of Crime since the late Heath Ledger's lauded performance in Christopher Nolan's ‘The Dark Knight’. Adding to the controversy was the fact that Leto reportedly sent his ‘Suicide Squad’ co-stars a number of bizarre and disgusting gifts. At the time, the actor said this was a method acting approach, because his character "doesn't really respect things like personal space or boundaries." A number of his co-stars spoke about the gifts they had received from Leto, revealing they had included things such as used condoms, a live rat, anal beads, pornography magazines, and even a dead pig from the Oscar-winner.
Now, Leto has confirmed that these items were sent "with a spirit of fun and adventure." Speaking to EW, the actor revealed that these gifts were all "received with laughter" and that there was nothing serious about them. The actor even called out a particular gift as untrue stating that there were "no used condoms" given to his Suicide Squad castmates. Leto went on to reiterate that "nothing ever crossed any lines." -News Rush