Jared Leto Talks 'Painful' Process Becoming the Joker in 'Suicide Squad'

— -- Little bits of information on "Suicide Squad" have been trickling out here and there. Recently, the film's star Will Smith opened up about how he never met Jared Leto, who plays the Joker in the movie, because he was always in character.

Now, Leto himself is finally talking about what he calls a "painful" process becoming Batman's greatest foe.

"There was definitely a period of…detachment,” he told Empire magazine in its latest issue.

"I took a pretty deep dive. But this was a unique opportunity and I couldn't imagine doing it another way," he added.

In fact, co-star Adam Beach told E! a few weeks back that Leto, acting in character, sent Margot Robbie, who plays Harley Quinn, a rat. Robbie, the Joker's love interest in the film, kept the rat as a pet.

"It was fun, playing those psychological games," Leto told Empire. "It was painful, like giving birth out of my --------."

"Squad" director David Ayer said Leto's transformation was "scary."

"By some freaking miracle, through the incredible things Jared has done and the photography and all the other things that went into it, we’ve cooked up something transcendent. He’s scary," Ayer added.