Jared Leto Believes Marvel Movies Saved Movie Theaters

In a time when few chose to attend movie theaters, Jared Leto says Marvel movies swooped in to save cinema as we know it. As exhibitors began to clamp down and close their locations amidst rising COVID cases, the Oscar-winning actor suggests it was Hollywood's biggest franchise to swoop in and set things right. The Morbius star appears in this week's cover story in Variety, and he makes such claims in his story.

"If it wasn't for Marvel films, I don't even know if theaters would exist," the actor told the trade. "It doesn't seem like there's room for everyone, and that starts to become a little heartbreaking. I also have gratitude for these movies because they're keeping cinema alive."

In the same story, Leto admits he's a bit of a film "snob" and a cinephile, recounting going to theaters as a child and taking in the experience.

"I know how important that was for me as a kid… escaping to the movies. That cultural experience was quite informative and impactful," he adds. "I saw movies in theaters that changed my life."

Leto will soon make his second go-around in the world of comic book cinema. After playing the Joker in David Ayer's Suicide Squad (2016), he'll soon join the Marvel multiverse as Michael Morbius in Sony's blood-sucking blockbuster. While it looks like he's moving forward with his career full-steam ahead, the actor did keep it open when asked if he'd return to play the Clown Prince of Crime.

"Never say never," he says. "It's such a great cliche, but I heard Conor McGregor say it again recently. And I said, 'You know what? You're right, Conor. You never say never.'"

Sony's synopsis for Morbius can be found below.

One of Marvel's most compelling and conflicted characters comes to the big screen as Oscar winner Jared Leto transforms into the enigmatic antihero, Michael Morbius. Dangerously ill with a rare blood disorder, and determined to save others suffering his same fate, Dr. Morbius attempts a desperate gamble. What at first appears to be a radical success soon reveals itself to be a remedy potentially worse than the disease.

Morbius will hit cinemas on April 1st.

What other Spidey-family characters do you hope to see in live-action at one point or another? Let us know your thoughts either in the comments section or by hitting our writer @AdamBarnhardt up on Twitter to chat all things Marvel!