Jared Leto Talks The Joker’s Role In “Justice League”

HBO Max’s Justice League will be hitting screens across the globe later on this month on March 18th, and the film has taking quite the path to release. While the 2017 Zack Snyder/Joss Whedon Frankenstein’s Monster has been widely derided, many have hope that the true version will be a success, and the hype train is in full force in the lead-up to the movie’s release.

In fact, actor Jared Leto spoke with IGN this past weekend about his iteration of The Joker having a bit of a role. Specifically, Leto reflected on the recent photos that were released, which portray the Clown Prince of Crime in a straight jacket, that the internet has dubbed “Joker as Jesus”. Leto stated that:

What inspired [Joker’s] look was the sort of post-apocalyptic world that I’m a huge fan of and, really, the idea was that as the movies progressed, the next movie – if there ever was one, and it doesn’t seem like there ever will be – but if there was, it would exist primarily in that world with them trying to set it right. [The sequence] doesn’t overstay its welcome but it definitely does what I needed it to do for the story and for us. Beyond that I think it’s a spoiler.

It’s interesting to get a glimpse of how the Joker factors into the plot, though it’s been widely speculated that he is a part of another “knightmare” dream sequence. Be that as it may, Leto also talked about the film’s ending, which is apparently a cliffhanger:

Well, [the original ‘Justice League’ plan] was meant to be two more movies… [The Snyder Cut] hints, as you would, at a potential other world. I’d plant the seeds as I had wanted to of what would come in the later films, so that’s in there, but as far as those stories that would be to come – if ever that happened, which it does not look like it would – but I think it’s easy to speculate based on that and we can talk about that for quite a while… The movie ends in a massive cliffhanger.

Given the tenacious nature of the Snydercut fanbase, it’s unlikely that they would be happy with such an open ending. Zack Snyder himself has discussed the possibility of returning, but there is no deal in place and the ball is firmly in Warner Bros. court. If the film opens well though, and critics and audiences are receptive to it, there is always the possibility that Justice League could get a proper sequel in the DCEU.