Jared Leto Will Play The Joker In Zack Snyder's 'Justice League'
Leto reprises the role from 2016's 'Suicide Squad.'
Jared Leto is joining the cast of the forthcoming Justice League film. Leto will reprise his role as The Joker from the 2016 Warner Bros. outing Suicide Squad. Dubbed "The Snyder Cut," director Zack Snyder's Justice League is set for release next year exclusively on HBO Max.
Leto, an Academy Award winner, is a tremendous talent. Although he played a highly-billed character in Suicide Squad, Leto's total screen time clocked in at a minuscule 7 minutes, 20 seconds. Many fans and critics didn't buy in to Leto as the Joker, while others felt that they didn't truly get to see what Leto could do with the infamous character. The latter group will get their wish next year.
The Snyder Cut is an extended version of Justice League. In May 2017, Snyder stepped down from the director's chair following a family tragedy. Joss Whedon (Avengers: Age of Ultron) came in to finish the film. Although it hauled in $650 million at the box office, the movie received lukewarm reviews from fans, prompting many to call for a release of Snyder's original version.
The new photography is being financed by HBO Max. Shooting has already commenced with Ben Affleck (Batman), Ray Fisher (Cyborg), and Amber Heard (Mera). While we now know that Leto is involved, it is unclear what other actors have been on set.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, sources say that two producers who were involved with the 2017 film are quietly stepping aside for The Snyder Cut. Jon Berg and Geoff Johns, then-studio executives who oversaw the original film and the reshoot by Joss Whedon, will not be receiving producer credits on the new version.
Sources close to Berg and Johns have confirmed their intention to remove their names from The Snyder Cut since they did not work on this version and are no longer studio executives. The sources also revealed that the move pays respect to Snyder’s creative vision and the additional photography shoot.
The Joker character did not appear in the original 2017 version of Justice League. With Leto signing on to bring The Joker to the new Justice League, we must ask if this will tie the two films together, and if Snyder is setting up another massive forthcoming DC film. Snyder executive produced Suicide Squad with his wife and partner Deborah Snyder.
Check out the official trailer for Zack Snyder's Justice League below.
- Matt Bishop