Jared Leto is never one to shy away from responsibility to a role - and, boy, did he do his homework here.
The Joker is Suicide Squad's most menacing villain and one of the most popular- and psychotic - DC Comics characters, so Leto spent time with some real nasty characters of his own to prepare for the part.
"I met with experts, doctors, psychiatrists that dealt with psychopaths and people who had committed horrendous crimes, and then I spent some time with those people themselves, people who have been institutionalised for great periods of time," Leto told Entertainment Weekly.
"I guess when you take on a role, any role, you become part-detective, part-writer, and for me that's my favourite time of the entire process."
He added: "The Joker is fantastic because there are no rules.
"This is someone who gets an extreme reward from the act of violence and manipulation."
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The method actor famously stayed in character throughout the shoot, sending a dead rat to his co-star Margot Robbie and anal beads to various other cast-members.
Whatever happened to good old-fashioned flowers?
"I had to stay committed," Leto said.
The David Ayer-directed Suicide Squad also stars Will Smith, Jai Courtney and Viola Davies. It hits cinemas on August 5.
