Despite being one of the better post-Scream meta slashers, Jared Leto straight-up pretended he’d never heard of Urban Legend – despite playing the male lead. The success of the Scream movies kicked off a wave of slashers that also needed to comment on the horror genre itself, since as I Know What You Did Last Summer or Cherry Falls; even legacy sequel Halloween H20: 20 Years Later got in on the action. One of the most enjoyable is the Jared Leto horror movie Urban Legend from 1998.

This saw a group of university students being stalked by a killer who models their kills on spooky urban legends, such as the “killer in the backseat.” Urban Legend only has 30% on Rotten Tomatoes and is too slick and overblown to be truly frightening. Even so, it’s a fun example of the genre from the late 1990s, and boasts a great cast of rising talent, like Joshua Jackson and Michael Rosenbaum; Longlegs star Alicia Witt is also Urban Legends‘ main character. The second lead is Jared Leto’s arrogant journalism student Paul, who also becomes a suspect.

Jared Leto Claimed To Have Never Heard Of Urban Legend During An Interview

Jared Leto apparently memory holed the slasher

Leto had few credits to his name prior to Urban Legend, including Dennis Quaid thriller Switchback. Of course, he would go on to a run of instant classics following 1998, including Fight Club, American Psycho and the harrowing addiction drama Requiem for a Dream. It’s for the latter film that Leto was interviewed by IGN in 2000, with this chat going over his career thus far. Unfortunately for the interviewer, Leto seemed to have completely forgotten he starred in Urban Legend when asked about the slasher a mere two years later after its release.

IGN: When you did Urban Legend.

Jared Leto: What’s that?

IGN: That horror flick you did back in 1998.

JL: I didn’t do that.

IGN: Yeah you did. You were the college newspaper reporter…

JL: I was?

IGN: Yeah.

JL: Get the **** outta here! What are you talkin’ about [laughs].

IGN: Urban Legend, dude. That horror movie about urban myths with Rebecca Gayheart.

JL: I don’t even remember that.

IGN: Okay…obviously it wasn’t that good of an experience then.

JL: [laughs] I don’t even know what you’re talkin’ about dude.

IGN: You were the damn lead, this college newspaper reporter and all the kids in school were dying around you.

JL: That’s so weird. I’ve never even heard of that movie.

IGN: You’re kidding, right?

JL: No.

IGN: Alright, dude.

JL: [laughs]

IGN: Seems like you’ve erased a minor historical footnote in your burgeoning film career.

JL: I must of had a blackout [laughs].

IGN’s Spence D naturally ᴀssumes Leto is joking around when he claims not to have heard of Urban Legend, only for the star to double, triple and quadruple down on this point. Reading between the lines, it’s clear it’s not a film Leto is particularly proud of, and would rather guide the discussion elsewhere. It may have been awkward in the moment for IGN’s interviewer, though in Leto’s defense, he’s not mean or nasty in his evasion; he’s trying to make his feigned ignorance into a comedy bit.

The only real hint during the interview is after Leto claims to have had a blackout, and he signs off on the subject with “You live and you learn, you know what I mean?” This suggests Leto simply doesn’t like Urban Legend, and considers starring in it a mistake. A little harsh, perhaps, considering it’s far from his worst project (especially in a post-Morbius world), but he’s enтιтled to his opinion on it too.

Why Jared Leto Pretended He Wasn’t In Urban Legend

Leto’s career was already on a different track in 2000

In the space between Urban Legend and Requiem for a Dream, Leto would work with directors like Terrence Malick (The Thin Red Line), David Fincher (Fight Club) and Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream). For the latter, he went full method to play a drug addict, and lost a lot of weight for the film through fasting. Critics praised Leto’s work in the 2000 drama and may have anticipated awards buzz for the movie; in short, wanting to be taken seriously as an actor is likely why Leto distanced himself from Urban Legend during the IGN chat.

All of his follow-up projects were helmed by auteur filmmakers, and Leto had far more interesting characters to play than Urban Legends‘ Paul. Leto likely saw Urban Legend as a paying gig that showed off his leading man potential, but following its critical drubbing probably felt it was better left in the past. Needless to say, he never appeared in anything remotely like the slasher again, even if movies like Moebius or Haunted Mansion are horror adjacent.

There is talk of an Urban Legend reboot on the horizon, but if it proves to be a legacy sequel, fans probably shouldn’t expect a Jared Leto return. That’s probably for the best all around; Paul wasn’t that deep of a character, but Leto’s disengaged, somewhat aloof performance doesn’t do the slasher any favors either.

Source: IGN