Jared Leto is an American entertainer with an extensive career in film, music, and television. He made his debut with minor roles in the television shows Camp Wilder (1992) and Almost Home (1993). He achieved recognition in 1994 for his role as Jordan Catalano in the teen drama television series My So-Called Life. The show was praised for its portrayal of adolescence and gained a cult following, despite being canceled after only one season. The same year, he made his TV movie debut starring alongside Alicia Silverstone in Cool and the Crazy. Leto's first film role was in the 1995 drama How to Make an American Quilt. He later co-starred with Christina Ricci in The Last of the High Kings (1996) and received a supporting role in Switchback (1997). In 1997, Leto starred in the biopic Prefontaine, in which he played the role of Olympic hopeful Steve Prefontaine. His portrayal received positive reviews from critics and is often considered his breakthrough role. The following year, Leto starred together with Alicia Witt in the horror Urban Legend. He then acted alongside Sean Penn and Adrien Brody in the war film The Thin Red Line (1998). After supporting roles in Black and White and Girl, Interrupted, Leto portrayed Angel Face in Fight Club (1999), which has since become a cult film.
In 2000, Leto played Paul Allen in the psychological thriller American Psycho. The same year, he starred as heroin addict Harry Goldfarb in Requiem for a Dream, directed by Darren Aronofsky. His acting in the addiction drama received praise from film critics. During this period Leto focused increasingly on his band Thirty Seconds to Mars, returning to acting in 2002 in the David Fincher-directed thriller Panic Room, which was well-received both critically and commercially. Following the lead role in the independent film Highway (2002), he co-starred with Colin Farrell in the historical drama Alexander (2004) as Hephaestion. Leto then starred together with Nicolas Cage in the political crime thriller Lord of War (2005) and acted alongside Salma Hayek in the crime drama Lonely Hearts (2006) as Raymond Fernandez. He also began to direct music videos for Thirty Seconds to Mars, with the first being "The Kill" (2006). The following year, he portrayed Mark David Chapman in the biopic Chapter 27. Despite divided critical opinion on the film as a whole, Leto's performance was widely praised.
In 2009, he starred in the science fiction drama Mr. Nobody directed by Jaco Van Dormael. Critics praised the film's artistry and Leto's acting. He later directed the music videos for "Kings and Queens" (2009) and "Hurricane" (2010), which were both nominated for the MTV Video Music Award for Best Direction. The latter garnered controversy upon release and was initially censored due to its elements of violence. In 2011 he narrated the British motorcycle racing documentary TT3D: Closer to the Edge. In 2012, Leto made his directorial debut with the documentary film Artifact. After a six-year hiatus, he returned to film acting in the 2013 drama Dallas Buyers Club starring together with Matthew McConaughey, for which he received the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture, Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role and a variety of film critics' circle awards. Leto then premiered the web series Into the Wild (2014) and the documentary film A Day in the Life of America (2019). He also played the Joker in the superhero film Suicide Squad (2016), which was unfavorably reviewed by critics. Leto would reprise his role as the Joker in Zack Snyder's director cut of Justice League (2021).
In 2021, he played suspected serial killer Albert Sparma in John Lee Hancock's film The Little Things, which earned Leto nominations for a Golden Globe Award and Screen Actors Guild Award—both for Best Supporting Actor. The same year, Leto portrays fashion designer and business magnate Paolo Gucci in Ridley Scott's biographical crime drama film House of Gucci, which earned Leto nomination for a Satellite Award and Critics' Choice Movie Award—both for Best Supporting Actor. He played the Marvel Comics character Morbius the Living Vampire in the live-action film Morbius released in 2022, part of Sony's Spider-Man Universe.
Film +KeyIndicates a film that has not yet been releasedIndicates a documentary + Year Title Credited as Role Notes Actor Director Producer 1995 How to Make an American Quilt Beck 1996 1997 Prefontaine Switchback 1998 Basil Basil Urban Legend 1999 Black and White Casey Fight Club Angel Face Girl, Interrupted 2000 American Psycho Requiem for a Dream Sunset Strip 2001 Sol Goode Rock Star Wannabe Uncredited cameo 2002 Highway Panic Room Junior Phone Booth Bobby Deleted scene 2004 Alexander Hephaestion 2005 Hubert Selby Jr: It/ll Be Better Tomorrow Himself Lord of War 2006 Lonely Hearts 2007 Chapter 27 2009 Mr. Nobody 2011 TT3D: Closer to the Edge Narrator Voice 2012 Artifact Himself 2013 Dallas Buyers Club Rayon 2015 Jeremy Scott: The People's Designer Himself 2016 Holy Hell — Suicide Squad 2017 2036: Nexus Dawn Short film Blade Runner 2049 2018 The Outsider 2019 A Day in the Life of America — 2021 The Little Things Zack Snyder's Justice League House of Gucci 2022 Morbius 2023 Haunted Mansion Voice and motion-capture 2025 Tron: Ares Ares 2026 Masters of the Universe Skeletor
Television + Year Title Credited as Role Notes Actor Director Producer 1992–1993 Camp Wilder Dexter 2 episodes 1993 Almost Home 1 episode 1994–1995 My So-Called Life Jordan Catalano 19 episodes 1994 Cool and the Crazy Michael Television film 2003 Hollywood High Himself Television special 2006 Narrator (voice) Television film 2014–2015 Into the Wild Himself 16 episodes 2015–2018 Beyond the Horizon 17 episodes 2016 Great Wide Open 5 episodes 2022 WeCrashed Adam Neumann 8 episodes 2024 Wheel of Fortune Host 1 episode
Music video + Year Title Credited as Notes Director Producer Other 2002 2003 2005 2006 2008 2009 2010 Editor Writer 2011 2013 Editor Editor 2016 Guest appearance 2017 2018 2021 "Hail to the Victor" Editor 2023
Video games +Video game credits Year Title Role Notes 2025 Fortnite Battle Royale Ares Likeness
See also List of awards and nominations received by Jared Leto
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