By Lisa Richwine
LOS ANGELES, July 29 (Reuters) – Oscar-winning American actor Jared Leto on Wednesday denied sexual misconduct claims made by four women who told the BBC that the Hollywood star assaulted them when they were teenagers.
“I have never sexually assaulted anyone in my entire life. These claims are absolutely and categorically false,” Leto said in a statement.
In a documentary called “Jared Leto: Hollywood’s Dark Secret,” four women described encounters that took place between 2002 and 2016 when the actor was in his 30s or 40s. He is now 54.
In the documentary, one of the women said she was sexually assaulted in a motel bathroom when she was 17. Another said the Hollywood star threatened her with sexual assault when she was 19.
A third said she had underage sex with the star in California when she was 17, which would be classified as statutory rape. A fourth said Leto made sexually explicit phone calls to her when she was 16.
Four others described “strange and often very sexual phone calls from Leto,” the BBC said.
The outlet said it had 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, we have also seen pictures and messages that support the women’s accounts,” the BBC said.
In 2025, nine women accused Leto of sexual impropriety in a piece by U.S. outlet Air Mail.
Leto won an Academy Award for best supporting actor for his role as an HIV-positive transgender woman in 2013 film “Dallas Buyers Club.” He also appeared in “House of Gucci,” “Suicide Squad” and “Morbius.”
Outside of acting, Leto is the lead singer for the alternative rock band Thirty Seconds to Mars.
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine, Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)
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