Zack Snyder Shares New Photo of Jared Leto’s Joker from ZACK SNYDER'S JUSTICE LEAGUE
Zack Snyder has shared a haunting new photo of Jared Leto as the Joker from Zack Snyder’s Justice League, giving fans another eerie glimpse at the Clown Prince of Crime’s post-apocalyptic look.
When Leto first appeared as the Joker in 2016’s Suicide Squad, the reaction from fans and critics was… intense. Before release, there was plenty of hype surrounding his casting, but once the first image dropped, things took a turn.
Then came the film itself, which ended up being widely disliked, and Leto’s take on the character became one of the most divisive parts of the movie. For a while, it looked like that would be the end of his Joker.
Then came Snyder’s return. When Warner Bros. brought the director back to finish his version of Justice League, fans were surprised to learn that Leto would reprise his role for a new sequence set in a grim, post-apocalyptic future.
It was a surprising move, one that finally gave audiences the long-awaited face-off between Batman and Joker, even if Ben Affleck and Leto filmed their scenes separately.
Now, years later, Snyder has dropped a new monochrome shot of Leto in full Joker mode. He posted the image on social media with the caption, “50mm Dream lens Leica monochrome.” The photo continues Snyder’s recent run of sharing behind-the-scenes gems from his DC projects, and this one might be his creepiest yet.
Back in 2021, Leto spoke about his return as the Joker and what it meant to be part of the Snyder Cut: “I always loved Zack Snyder and I think that the story behind this Snyder Cut is really, kind of one for the ages—what happened around him not finishing the first film. [...]
“But I was just happy to be part of his dream, and to get asked to play the Joker for a second time was just a treat. It's one of those roles that is just incredible.”
Leto also revealed that his now-famous line, “We live in a society,” was completely improvised and ultimately made it into the trailer. When asked whether this Joker was the same one from Suicide Squad or a new version, Leto said:
“Well, I think it's an evolution. You know, they're some years apart, and certainly different directors. When you collaborate with somebody [...] it brings out a different side, or a different Joker, a different energy.
“And when you work with a different director, you bring out different things, or they bring out different things in you. So, I loved working with him. I loved his passion. He knows more about this world than almost anybody.”
According to Zack Snyder’s Justice League producer Deborah Snyder, getting Leto back on board wasn’t simple:
“Zack [Snyder] and Jared [Leto] talked for a while. Before we approached the studio, he wanted to make sure that they would be interested. At first, it was like 'No,' and then it was like, 'Well, maybe,' and then Zack was like, 'Do you want to see the scene that I worked on?'”
She went on to explain that Snyder wanted to honor what David Ayer had established in Suicide Squad while giving Joker a look and tone that matched his darker vision.
“Zack wanted to homage what David [Ayer] had done, but also make it his own. And it was post-apocalyptic, so we tried lots of different looks and everything. It was a couple of day process after doing drawings [of Joker].”
The result was a Joker unlike any we’d seen before, and he’s perfectly suited for Snyder’s nightmarish version of the DC Universe.