If there was ever a question if Jared Leto would be returning in his Joker role, the answer is now as clear as day thanks to the first episode of Peacemaker Season 2: Leto is out.
The episode – spoilers – features not one, not two, but three references to Jared Leto without directly naming the actor. John Cena’s Peacemaker says he doesn’t like the band Thirty Seconds To Mars, which is Leto’s band in real life. Jennifer Holland, Gunn’s wife, also agrees. And if that’s not clear, Gunn uses the post-credit scene to further say how they don’t like Thirty Seconds To Mars.
I do appreciate the time Peacemaker took to shit on 30 sec to mars… 😆 pic.twitter.com/FXSGp6UFMC
— Crazy Cloud (@CrzCloud) August 22, 2025
The context
So the context of the situation is that years ago, James Gunn accused Leto of being a pedophile. In May 2018, former Disney actor Dylan Sprouse tweeted that Leto had a pattern of dating younger women aged 18–25. Gunn replied to the post with a tweet reading, “He starts at 18 on the Internet?”
In 2015, Gunn also made remarks about Leto during a live Periscope video, which he later deleted. According to various accounts at the time, Gunn discussed rumors about Leto’s personal life, which included unverified claims regarding underage women.
The recent allegations against Leto
This past June saw allegations come about against Leto, including claims of inappropriate behavior with underage individuals and explicit misconduct. Several women allege that Leto initiated contact when they were 16 or 17, engaging in late-night calls with sexual content. Others describe in-person encounters, including claims that Leto exposed himself, masturbated in front of a young woman, and coerced sexual acts.
Leto no longer the DC joker
So while James Gunn is bringing back various actors and characters to the DCU from the DCEU, including the Peacemaker cast, Jason Momoa as Lobo, and there have even been rumors of Gunn bringing back Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn, Jared Leto won’t be returning as DC’s Clown Prince of Crime.
