Suicide Squad Actor Will Smith Has Never Spoken to Jared Leto, Only The Joker

Ever since it was announced that Jared Leto would be playing The Joker in DC's forthcoming supervillain team-up Suicide Squad, there has been much speculation about what the actor would bring to this iconic role. Now co-star Will Smith has spoken about the unusual experience of working with him.

In an interview with the Beats One radio show (via Complex), Smith reveals that Leto remained entirely in character throughout the film's production, refusing to speak to his fellow cast members except as the Joker.

"I've never actually met Jared Leto," said Smith. "We worked together for six months and we've never exchanged a word outside of 'Action!' and 'Cut!' I literally have not met him yet. So, the first time I see him will be 'Hey, Jared. What's up?' He was all in on the Joker."

Smith plays Deadshot in the movie, which is directed by Fury's David Ayer. It tells the story of a group of death row supervillains, who are employed covertly by the US government to perform dangerous missions, in return for reduced prison sentences. Margot Robbie also features as Harley Quinn, with Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flag, and Jai Courtney playing Boomerang.

Also this week, comic book writer Grant Morrison revealed to Gamesradar that Leto had approached him for advice on playing the Joker. "He called me to talk about his approach to the character and I steered him in a few directions," said Morrisson. "I'm keen to see if anything other than slicked back hair and the Marilyn Manson vibe made it into his performance."

Suicide Squad is due for release on August 5, 2016.