Claim: Jared Leto is an actor.

Jared Joseph Leto -LRB- -LSB- ˈlɛtoʊ -RSB- born December 26 , 1971 -RRB- is an American actor , singer-songwriter , and director . After starting his career with television appearances in the early 1990s , Leto achieved recognition for his role as Jordan Catalano on the television series My So-Called Life -LRB- 1994 -RRB- . He made his film debut in How to Make an American Quilt -LRB- 1995 -RRB- and received critical praise for his performance in Prefontaine -LRB- 1997 -RRB- . Leto played supporting roles in The Thin Red Line -LRB- 1998 -RRB- , Fight Club -LRB- 1999 -RRB- and American Psycho -LRB- 2000 -RRB- , as well as the lead role in Urban Legend -LRB- 1998 -RRB- , and earned critical acclaim after portraying heroin addict Harry Goldfarb in Requiem for a Dream -LRB- 2000 -RRB- . He later began focusing increasingly on his music career , returning to acting with Panic Room -LRB- 2002 -RRB- , Alexander -LRB- 2004 -RRB- , Lord of War -LRB- 2005 -RRB- , Lonely Hearts -LRB- 2006 -RRB- , Chapter 27 -LRB- 2007 -RRB- , and Mr. Nobody -LRB- 2009 -RRB- . In 2012 , he directed the documentary film Artifact . In 2016 , he played the DC Comics supervillain Joker in the DC Extended Universe film Suicide Squad .   Leto 's performance as a transgender woman in Dallas Buyers Club -LRB- 2013 -RRB- earned him an Academy Award , a Golden Globe Award , and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Supporting Actor . Leto is considered to be a method actor , known for his constant devotion to and research of his roles . He often remains completely in character for the duration of the shooting schedules of his films , even to the point of adversely affecting his health . He is also known to be selective about his film roles .   Leto is the lead vocalist , multi-instrumentalist and main songwriter for Thirty Seconds to Mars , a band he formed in 1998 in Los Angeles , California , with his older brother Shannon Leto . Their debut album , 30 Seconds to Mars -LRB- 2002 -RRB- , was released to positive reviews but only to limited success . The band achieved worldwide fame with the release of their second album A Beautiful Lie -LRB- 2005 -RRB- . Their following releases , This Is War -LRB- 2009 -RRB- and Love , Lust , Faith and Dreams -LRB- 2013 -RRB- , received further critical and commercial success . As of September 2014 , the band has sold over 15 million albums worldwide . Leto has also directed music videos , including the MTV Video Music Award -- winning `` The Kill '' -LRB- 2006 -RRB- , `` Kings and Queens '' -LRB- 2009 -RRB- , and `` Up in the Air '' -LRB- 2013 -RRB- .