"I was just thinking that the Joker would probably just say, 'F**k you,' and hang up," Jared Leto responded when Empire Magazine caught up with the actor to talk about his role as The Joker in Suicide Squad for the very first time. The actor is of course very familiar with what goes on in the head of the Clown Prince of Crime, especially as he never broke character during the shoot, something which led to him tormenting his fellow cast members in unique ways. For Jim Parrack (who plays The Joker's henchman, Jonny Frost) that included random calls throughout the day, with orders to spray paint roses black and filling a backpack with nine inch nails. "There was definitely a period of...detachment," Leto explains. "I took a pretty deep dive. But this was a unique opportunity and I couldn't imagine doing it another way. It was fun, playing those psychological games. But at the same time it was very painful, like giving birth out of my prick hole."
Revealing that he listened to 1920s gospel music and read literature on shamans while playing The Joker, Leto offered some interesting insight into this take on the villain when he said, "I always get the sense that The Joker may be much older than people think. It's something different. If you don't break rules, you're not going to strike new ground. I think I'll be cooling down for the rest of my life." Suicide Squad producer Charles Roven also chimed in by revealing that the villain's dress sense has been inspired by Mexican cartels, while he's now, "More social...a very successful and smart businessman besides being a sociopath." Director David Ayer meanwhile had this to say about how Leto's take on the villain will differ to what's come before on the big screen. "The Joker is the third rail of comic book movies. There's a power to that character, and by some freaking miracle, through the incredible things Jared has done and the photography and all the other millions of things that went into it, we've cooked up something transcendent. He's scary."
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