Jared Leto Born: Oscar Winner and Rock Frontman

Jared Leto built parallel careers as a critically acclaimed actor and rock frontman, winning an Academy Award for Dallas Buyers Club while leading Thirty Seconds to Mars to multi-platinum success. Born in Bossier City, Louisiana, in 1971, he grew up in an itinerant household, living in communes and military bases before his family settled in the Washington, D.C., area. He moved to Los Angeles and landed his first major role in the television series My So-Called Life in 1994, playing the heartthrob Jordan Catalano with a studied detachment that made the character more compelling than the archetype required. He founded Thirty Seconds to Mars in 1998 with his brother Shannon, and the band's combination of stadium rock ambition and electronic production built a global following that filled arenas across Europe, South America, and Asia. The band set a Guinness World Record for the longest concert tour ever, performing over three hundred shows across a single tour cycle. His acting career gained momentum with roles in Fight Club, Requiem for a Dream, and American Psycho, but his commitment to physical transformation became his signature. He gained over sixty pounds to play Mark David Chapman, lost over thirty to play a heroin addict, and his portrayal of the transgender woman Rayon in Dallas Buyers Club, for which he lost forty pounds and adopted feminine mannerisms for months before filming, won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 2014. His portrayal of the Joker in Suicide Squad was divisive but demonstrated his commitment to immersive preparation. He also emerged as a prolific investor in technology companies and a collector of Bored Ape NFTs.