Jared Leto Mocks His Method Actor Reputation While Presenting Golden Globe: ‘I’ve Learned the Art of Holding an Envelope’

Jared Leto joined Angela Bassett as a presenter at the 2024 Golden Globes and took a moment to roast himself over his status as one of Hollywood’s most infamous Method actors. The Oscar winner helped announce this year’s categories for best supporting actress and actor in a motion picture. The winners were Da’Vine Joy Randolph for “The Holdovers” and Robert Downey Jr. for “Oppenheimer,” respectively.

“I have been in presenter mode for weeks now,” Leto told the audience. “I’ve been doing research developing my character, incessantly reminding everyone around me to please call me by my character name, dammit.”

“You mean ‘Jared Leto?’” Bassett asked.

“Exactly! I’ve also learned the art of holding an envelope,” Leto continued. “It’s about the angle, the grip. It’s about the subtlety, the meaningful connection between presenter partner and paper. It is a deeply emotional journey…This is embodying the spirit of the Golden Globes. Feeling each nominee’s hopes and dreams at your fingertips as you hold their destiny and their agent’s bonuses/balls in your hands.”

Leto’s Method acting stories have been well documented, whether he’s gaining or losing weight for a role (he shed nearly 40 pounds for his Oscar-winning role in “Dallas Buyers Club”) or getting so into the Joker for “Suicide Squad” that he sent his cast members disgusting presents.

“I appreciate the term, but I think it’s a little cloudy, the definition,” Leto told Variety in 2020 about being labeled a Method actor. “And it could also be really pretentious as well. I was thinking of it as my job to show up and do the best work that I can. It’s my job to show up, do whatever I can, to be overprepared. And to deliver. It’s also my job to show up and, you know, be a pleasure to work with. And to be collaborative, and to have a good experience on set.”

Leto recently popped up in Disney’s “The Haunted Mansion” last year and he will next headline the tentpole “Tron: Ares.”