Jared Leto is a super fine hottie plus he makes damn cool movies too. Hes so chill and he knows about SuicideGirls too. He thinks hes seen some of you sweet ladies at some of his 30 Seconds to Mars shows. His latest flick is Lord of War and he plays the junkie brother to Nicolas Cages Uri Orlov, a major international gun runner.
Check out the official site for Lord of War
Daniel Robert Epstein: Why do directors always want you to play drug addicts?
Jared Leto: I dont know man. Maybe I need to stop shooting dope.
I think Im going to write a script about a blind sheep dog who talks. Im going to break all conventions and people are going to be like Wow this guys a comedic genius or something. But mainly you look for a great script, a great director, and a great part. I felt that way about Lord of War. I really love Andrew Niccol. I love his really unique kind of outlook on things. I was a huge fan of Gattaca and certainly The Truman Show was very clever. Hes a very unique mind. So does Nic Cage so to go work alongside them was a pretty easy decision. But there is a consistency with me being maimed and brutalized from film to film. In next two films I have coming out it gets even worse.
DRE: David Fincher told me that he loves to smash your face because its so pretty.
JL: Yeah he loves to beat the hell out of me. Hes got his pretty side too, dont be fooled [laughs].
DRE: Niccol and Cage did quite a bit of research for this movie; did you do that as well?
JL: In a strange way, my character in Lord of War was a distant nephew of Harry Goldfarb in Requiem for a Dream. Theyre both from the exact same neighborhood, Little Odessa and theyre both Russian immigrants. I saw a similarity there and it was interesting to let that play in the subliminal, subconscious world. I certainly knew a lot about that neighborhood and I started to learn Russian, which was fantastic and very difficult. But I started to slip into Russian so much that I got told that I needed to relax because the movie would end up being subtitled [laughs]. I was told it would ruin the film and that it was annoying the hell out of Nic Cage. So we cut that back a lot, but it was fun to do.
DRE: After working with people like David Fincher, Darren Aronofsky, Oliver Stone and Andrew Niccol its really obvious the most important person for you to work with is the director.
JL: Yeah, I definitely have been very focused on working with the best directors that I can. I really want to make films that challenge me and are rewarding. Ive been very fortunate to work with some of those people. Even if its a small experience like the one I did with Terrence Malick, to have a relationship with an artist like him is an unbelievable experience.
DRE: One could always expect when Oliver Stones film comes out it will be attacked for whatever reason. Even Colin Farrell made fun of Alexander on Saturday Night Live. But what do you do when attacks may be justified?
JL: Well, I was a small part of that movie. But how can you not go to work with Oliver Stone on a film about Alexander the Great? I would probably make the same choice, knowing that the movie didnt hit. Maybe it was slightly a miss in some ways but the experience of those six months in the deserts of Morocco and Thailand and working with all these people was really life-changing. I cant take responsibility for the film, thats all Oliver. So for me its all about the experience of making the film. I have no control about the outcome unless Im directing, producing, editing, writing and starring in it myself. Oliver Stone is a madman and hes made some of the best films ever. Platoon is a rite of passage for every young person so Im very proud of working with him.
DRE: How was it going back to Africa for Lord of War?
JL: It was weird because I was in northern Africa and then a year later almost to the day I was in southern Africa which is completely different. It was really beautiful. I went on safari a couple of times. I didnt have to work every single day so I took advantage of being down there.
DRE: Andrew Niccol said that you are the conscience of Lord of War. Is that something you put in your mind or do you just play the script as it is?
JL: I think all of those elements are in your thoughts whether theyre conscious or not. Nic, Andrew and I certainly had a lot of philosophical conversations. Nic is a master at what he does. He can turn it on in a heartbeat. He is so gifted and I really did learn a lot from him as far as acting goes. Ive been a fan of his since I was a kid. Hes really done some tremendous work so it was intimidating really doing a lot of scenes with him. It was great.
DRE: How much knowledge did you have of gun running before this movie?
JL: I had a bit of information but this movie definitely educated me about this strange world of international arms dealing. Its a bizarre world, the sale of weapons and why were selling them. Lord of War is to gun running as Traffic was to drugs. It shows us the underbelly of a trade.
DRE: A couple of years ago I got to talk to the great character actor Joe Pantoliano. Hes gotten to work with people like Tom Cruise years before they got big. He was telling me about how there is certain things you have to do and a certain way you have to be if you want to become a big movie star. Do you know those things and have you purposely avoided them?
JL: I think that every person is unique unto himself and I really believe the best that you could do is be yourself. There are certainly good business ideas out there like dont have a sex tape of yourself too early in your career and try not to father too many illegitimate children [laughs]. Also work as hard as you possibly can. But there are all kinds of rules, but then there arent because theres a lot of faith and luck involved. I heard this really corny saying, but I like it, luck is the residue of fate.
DRE: Your band 30 Seconds to Mars is doing really well. How do you find a balance between music and acting?
JL: There are things that are difficult. Its straddling some sense of credibility and legitimacy. Weve been doing this for a long time and we were signed in 1998. Now people are starting to go, Hey you know what, theyre actually pretty good. They dont suck. Thats a lot to hope for in a world where there have been so many bad examples of people who may have been known in some small ways an actor attempting to make music. There have been such embarrassingly bad examples of that and weve had to clean up a lot of that mess. The other thing is just time-wise. I dont make very many films. Im very picky as it is, snobby in my own way I guess. You have to be willing to say no. Clint Eastwood wanted me to be in his new movie but I had to be on tour. I had made a commitment to support the record and I had to say no to one of my heroes. That was not an easy thing to do. I love making films, but you have to sacrifice.
DRE: After films like Fight Club, Requiem for a Dream and now Lord of War. Youve kind of gained a following of a certain type of following amongst younger people. Lily Taylor told me that whenever people know that shes going to be somewhere shell see some of the same faces. That must happen to you especially with the band.
JL: 30 Seconds to Mars definitely has a bona fide cult following. We have a very specific, dedicated, passionate fan base that shows up with homemade clothing and interpretations of the music through artwork. Its very intense and you see a lot of familiar faces, they follow us from show to show and quite often people drive for days and fly from other countries to see us. The thing about being an actor is youre not face to face with your fans very often. But being a musician you are faced with kids screaming and then talking with them after shows. So theres an investment in people. Its like a family.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
Check out the official site for Lord of War
Daniel Robert Epstein: Why do directors always want you to play drug addicts?
Jared Leto: I dont know man. Maybe I need to stop shooting dope.
I think Im going to write a script about a blind sheep dog who talks. Im going to break all conventions and people are going to be like Wow this guys a comedic genius or something. But mainly you look for a great script, a great director, and a great part. I felt that way about Lord of War. I really love Andrew Niccol. I love his really unique kind of outlook on things. I was a huge fan of Gattaca and certainly The Truman Show was very clever. Hes a very unique mind. So does Nic Cage so to go work alongside them was a pretty easy decision. But there is a consistency with me being maimed and brutalized from film to film. In next two films I have coming out it gets even worse.
DRE: David Fincher told me that he loves to smash your face because its so pretty.
JL: Yeah he loves to beat the hell out of me. Hes got his pretty side too, dont be fooled [laughs].
DRE: Niccol and Cage did quite a bit of research for this movie; did you do that as well?
JL: In a strange way, my character in Lord of War was a distant nephew of Harry Goldfarb in Requiem for a Dream. Theyre both from the exact same neighborhood, Little Odessa and theyre both Russian immigrants. I saw a similarity there and it was interesting to let that play in the subliminal, subconscious world. I certainly knew a lot about that neighborhood and I started to learn Russian, which was fantastic and very difficult. But I started to slip into Russian so much that I got told that I needed to relax because the movie would end up being subtitled [laughs]. I was told it would ruin the film and that it was annoying the hell out of Nic Cage. So we cut that back a lot, but it was fun to do.
DRE: After working with people like David Fincher, Darren Aronofsky, Oliver Stone and Andrew Niccol its really obvious the most important person for you to work with is the director.
JL: Yeah, I definitely have been very focused on working with the best directors that I can. I really want to make films that challenge me and are rewarding. Ive been very fortunate to work with some of those people. Even if its a small experience like the one I did with Terrence Malick, to have a relationship with an artist like him is an unbelievable experience.
DRE: One could always expect when Oliver Stones film comes out it will be attacked for whatever reason. Even Colin Farrell made fun of Alexander on Saturday Night Live. But what do you do when attacks may be justified?
JL: Well, I was a small part of that movie. But how can you not go to work with Oliver Stone on a film about Alexander the Great? I would probably make the same choice, knowing that the movie didnt hit. Maybe it was slightly a miss in some ways but the experience of those six months in the deserts of Morocco and Thailand and working with all these people was really life-changing. I cant take responsibility for the film, thats all Oliver. So for me its all about the experience of making the film. I have no control about the outcome unless Im directing, producing, editing, writing and starring in it myself. Oliver Stone is a madman and hes made some of the best films ever. Platoon is a rite of passage for every young person so Im very proud of working with him.
DRE: How was it going back to Africa for Lord of War?
JL: It was weird because I was in northern Africa and then a year later almost to the day I was in southern Africa which is completely different. It was really beautiful. I went on safari a couple of times. I didnt have to work every single day so I took advantage of being down there.
DRE: Andrew Niccol said that you are the conscience of Lord of War. Is that something you put in your mind or do you just play the script as it is?
JL: I think all of those elements are in your thoughts whether theyre conscious or not. Nic, Andrew and I certainly had a lot of philosophical conversations. Nic is a master at what he does. He can turn it on in a heartbeat. He is so gifted and I really did learn a lot from him as far as acting goes. Ive been a fan of his since I was a kid. Hes really done some tremendous work so it was intimidating really doing a lot of scenes with him. It was great.
DRE: How much knowledge did you have of gun running before this movie?
JL: I had a bit of information but this movie definitely educated me about this strange world of international arms dealing. Its a bizarre world, the sale of weapons and why were selling them. Lord of War is to gun running as Traffic was to drugs. It shows us the underbelly of a trade.
DRE: A couple of years ago I got to talk to the great character actor Joe Pantoliano. Hes gotten to work with people like Tom Cruise years before they got big. He was telling me about how there is certain things you have to do and a certain way you have to be if you want to become a big movie star. Do you know those things and have you purposely avoided them?
JL: I think that every person is unique unto himself and I really believe the best that you could do is be yourself. There are certainly good business ideas out there like dont have a sex tape of yourself too early in your career and try not to father too many illegitimate children [laughs]. Also work as hard as you possibly can. But there are all kinds of rules, but then there arent because theres a lot of faith and luck involved. I heard this really corny saying, but I like it, luck is the residue of fate.
DRE: Your band 30 Seconds to Mars is doing really well. How do you find a balance between music and acting?
JL: There are things that are difficult. Its straddling some sense of credibility and legitimacy. Weve been doing this for a long time and we were signed in 1998. Now people are starting to go, Hey you know what, theyre actually pretty good. They dont suck. Thats a lot to hope for in a world where there have been so many bad examples of people who may have been known in some small ways an actor attempting to make music. There have been such embarrassingly bad examples of that and weve had to clean up a lot of that mess. The other thing is just time-wise. I dont make very many films. Im very picky as it is, snobby in my own way I guess. You have to be willing to say no. Clint Eastwood wanted me to be in his new movie but I had to be on tour. I had made a commitment to support the record and I had to say no to one of my heroes. That was not an easy thing to do. I love making films, but you have to sacrifice.
DRE: After films like Fight Club, Requiem for a Dream and now Lord of War. Youve kind of gained a following of a certain type of following amongst younger people. Lily Taylor told me that whenever people know that shes going to be somewhere shell see some of the same faces. That must happen to you especially with the band.
JL: 30 Seconds to Mars definitely has a bona fide cult following. We have a very specific, dedicated, passionate fan base that shows up with homemade clothing and interpretations of the music through artwork. Its very intense and you see a lot of familiar faces, they follow us from show to show and quite often people drive for days and fly from other countries to see us. The thing about being an actor is youre not face to face with your fans very often. But being a musician you are faced with kids screaming and then talking with them after shows. So theres an investment in people. Its like a family.
by Daniel Robert Epstein
SG Username: AndersWolleck
VIEW 22 of 22 COMMENTS
mellissa:
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eureka_:
This is an awesome interview. Thank you.