Los Angeles: Academy Award-winning actor Jared Leto is currently at the centre of mounting controversy at the centre of mounting controversy following allegations of sexual misconduct leveled by nine women, some involving purported incidents with minors, according to an exposé released by Air Mail on Saturday, reports Dynamite News correspondent.
Leto, known for his performance in “House of Gucci” and “Justice League”, has been accused of sexual assault after a survivor chose to publicly recount her experience.
Among the accusers is Los Angeles-based DJ Allie Teilz, who publicly resurfaced a 2012 Facebook post via Instagram Stories, recounting a disturbing encounter. “You’re not really in L.A. until Jared Leto tries to force himself on you backstage… In a kilt.. And a snow hat. I was assaulted and traumatized by this creep when I was 17.” She also claimed that Jared Leto was aware of her age but chose to disregard it, describing his actions as “predatory, terrifying, and completely unacceptable.”
Among the allegations featured in the report, Laura La Rue — a model who was 16 in 2008 — recalled meeting Leto at an animal rights benefit that year and connecting with him over email before he invited her to his studio. She visited his studio in April 2009 and recalled him allegedly “flirting” with her while there.
In response to her claims, a representative for Leto told Air Mail that their “communications contain nothing sexual or inappropriate” and that La Rue “later applied to work as Mr. Leto’s personal assistant, further underscoring the absence of anything inappropriate in any of their interactions.”
La Rue, however, denied that she applied for the position. She also alleged, per Air Mail, that Leto walked out of a room nude “like it was normal” on one occasion when she was 17.
“I thought maybe this was just what adult men do,” she told the outlet.
Another woman, who says she was 16 in 2008, described meeting Leto in a Los Angeles café and giving him her number. She said that, days later, Leto called her home in the middle of the night with the “weirdest, grossest voice,” adding that she didn’t “know if he was on drugs.”
A representative for the actor told Air Mail that Leto “has not had a drink or used drugs in over 35 years.”
A fourth woman, who said she began a texting relationship with Leto when she was still underage, said his advances ramped up when she turned 18. She claims that during a subsequent visit to Leto’s house, he began masturbating in front of her. “All of the allegations are expressly denied,” Leto’s representative said in response. (With inputs from agencies)