Jared Leto describes his Joker as ‘Shakespearean’

The huge cast announcement for Suicide Squad included some of the biggest names around. Will Smith led the roster, and while Tom Hardy has since left the project, there is still something incredibly interesting to look forward to: Jared Leto as the Joker. The Oscar-winning actor has revealed in a recent interview with Billboard of how he envisions his take on the character:

‘The opportunity to take on this nearly Shakespearean character — that’s what graphic novels and comic books are becoming, right? … [He’s] this beautiful disaster of a character — what a big challenge.’

As you’re probably aware, Leto’s role as the Joker will be the first on-screen incarnation of the character since Heath Ledger’s 2008 turn in The Dark Knight, which rapidly became the defining interpretation (and before then, it was Jack Nicholson’s take in 1989’s Batman). But since Leto is using terms such as ‘Shakespearean’ here to describe the Joker, it seems there are plenty of ways of getting something different out of the comic book villain. When Suicide Squad eventually becomes reality on August 5, 2016, then we’ll find out if Leto will stand next to Ledger and Nicholson as the next iconic Clown Prince.