Jared Leto Accused of Criminal Sexual Conduct by Four Women in BBC Documentary

Four women have come forward with allegations of criminal sexual misconduct against actor and musician Jared Leto, claiming the incidents occurred when they were minors. These accusations are detailed in a new BBC documentary titled "Jared Leto: Hollywood’s Dark Secret," scheduled for release on Wednesday. The film features a total of ten women who have made claims against the 54-year-old Oscar winner, with the BBC noting that nine of them are speaking publicly about their experiences for the first time. The alleged misconduct spans from 2002 to 2016, a period when Leto was in his 30s and 40s, while the accusers were teenagers. Leto, renowned for his role in "Dallas Buyers Club" and as the lead singer of the rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars—a group that has sold millions of albums worldwide since its formation in 1998—has not yet responded to the documentary's claims.

A central allegation involves a woman who says Leto sexually assaulted her in a motel bathroom when she was 17. Another accuser claims the actor threatened her with sexual assault when she was 19. A third woman describes in the documentary how she allegedly had sex with Leto in California at age 17, which is below the state's age of consent of 18, meaning the encounter would legally constitute statutory rape. She says the actor "shrugged off" her mention of the legal age limit. A fourth woman alleges that Leto made repeated sexually explicit phone calls to her when she was 16, and on at least one occasion, he suggested they should have sex. The BBC reports that it has seen a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that this fourth woman was asked to sign to prevent her from discussing her relationship with Leto, but she refused to do so. Legal experts, such as Los Angeles-based attorney Sarah Mitchell, note that while NDAs are common in Hollywood settlements, their use in cases involving minors can raise serious ethical questions about silencing victims. Four additional women accuse Leto of making "strange and often very sexual" phone calls to them when they were younger. The documentary also highlights that the statute of limitations for some of these alleged crimes may have expired, complicating any potential legal action—a common hurdle in historical abuse cases, as legal timelines vary by state and crime type.

The BBC says it has corroborated "a number of the women’s accounts with friends and family who were told about the encounters with Leto at the time." In some cases, the broadcaster has also seen pictures and messages that "support the women’s accounts." Two men who worked with Leto's band, Thirty Seconds to Mars, also spoke to the documentary. They claimed that staff felt uncomfortable with how Leto would interact with teenage girls, alleging he sometimes invited them backstage to his dressing room or to the house where he was recording. "I think everyone thought the age gap was way too big," one of them said. One of the alleged victims stated: "This was 25 years ago… he has gotten away with it." Variety has reached out to Leto's representatives for comment but has not yet received a response. The documentary is expected to reignite debates about power dynamics and accountability in the entertainment industry, similar to the conversations sparked by the #MeToo movement in recent years. For context, the #MeToo movement, which gained global traction in 2017, has led to numerous high-profile investigations and convictions, though critics argue that systemic change in Hollywood remains slow.