--- description: In a new 'Rolling Stone' profile, the multitalented and unpredictable 'Suicide Squad' actor opens up about some of his quirks. title: A Brief History of Crazy Things Jared Leto Has Done image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [celebrities](/tag/celebrities/) ## celebrities Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # A Brief History of Things Modern Neanderthal Jared Leto Has Done to Get in Character  by [Raisa Bruner](/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 27, 2016 10:01 PM CUT  by [Raisa Bruner](/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 27, 2016 10:01 PM CUT In a new [cover story for ](http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/features/jared-leto-the-unlikely-triumphs-of-a-rock-star-movie-star-w430833 "undefined")_Rolling Stone,_ _Suicide Squad’s_ [resident Joker Jared Leto](http://time.com/4324670/suicide-squad-jared-leto-laugh/?iid=sr-link5 "undefined") brings us along for a wild trip through his quirky, unorthodox approach to everything from education to acting. Leto admits that much of what we know about him is probably false. “I lied about it \[my childhood\] so much, I don’t know what the truth is,” he claims. “I remember River Phoenix saying in an interview that he tried to lie as much as possible, and I just took that approach ever since.” That may be why he’s so comfortable with his seriously immersive method acting approach; with almost no formal acting training, he instead has a reputation for getting in character and staying there from start to finish on a project. For instance, for the drug-fueled 2000 film [_Requiem for a Dream_](http://content.time.com/time/video/player/0,32068,740009901001%5F2041140,00.html?iid=sr-link1 "undefined"), Leto spent weeks on the New York streets with a group of heroin junkies — although he insists he only ever shot up with water. “People would be uncomfortable if they’re all shooting up and you’re not,” he explained. “I wasn’t sharing a needle.” And for his Oscar-winning turn in [_Dallas Buyers Club_](http://entertainment.time.com/2013/09/12/dallas-buyers-club-mcconaughey-shines-as-a-homophobe-who-gets-aids/?iid=sr-link3 "undefined")with Matthew McConaughey, in which he played a transgender woman, Leto went all-in on his character from his first conversation with the director, showing up on set in a dress and never breaking for the entire filming process. “I didn’t know how to address him or her because he was such a lady. He was such a girl, and he was sexy!” director Jean-Marc Vallée [told _Rolling Stone_](http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/features/jared-leto-the-unlikely-triumphs-of-a-rock-star-movie-star-w430833 "undefined"). And it wasn’t just a skin-deep thing for Leto, either; he got crafty in other ways, too. “He tried to steal things from me,” McConaughey recalled for the magazine. “Literally, my pocketknife, lighters, et cetera.” Finally, for _Suicide Squad_, he picked up the Joker mantle with serious dedication, saying that he spent a lot of time becoming intimately acquainted with real, casual violence by watching YouTube videos. On set, he went by “Joker,” not “Jared.” And then there are the well-documented Joker pranks he played on his costars, including [sending Margot Robbie a boxed rat](http://time.com/4420595/suicide-squad-will-smith-jared-leto/?iid=sr-link4 "undefined"), and delivering bullets. So why is Leto so weird? We learn that, based on the results of a genetic test, Leto can claim a rather different gene makeup than most of us. “I have a lot of Neanderthal in me,” he told _Rolling Stone_. “Maybe that’s why I’m so good at climbing.” Among other things. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4427272/a-brief-history-of-things-modern-neanderthal-jared-leto-has-done-to-get-in-character/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4427272/a-brief-history-of-things-modern-neanderthal-jared-leto-has-done-to-get-in-character/"},"headline":"A Brief History of Things Modern Neanderthal Jared Leto Has Done to Get in Character","datePublished":"2016-07-27T22:01:08.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:34:51.646Z","description":"He's left Jordan Catalano way behind","url":"https://time.com/4427272/a-brief-history-of-things-modern-neanderthal-jared-leto-has-done-to-get-in-character/","keywords":["celebrities","Newsfeed","Entertainment","movies","jared leto"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/celebrities/","name":"celebrities"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4427272/a-brief-history-of-things-modern-neanderthal-jared-leto-has-done-to-get-in-character/","name":"A Brief History of Things Modern Neanderthal Jared Leto Has Done to Get in Character"}}]}] ```