Jared Leto was keen to "swing for the fences" as the iconic villain Skeletor in the upcoming Masters of the Universe movie.
According to director Travis Knight, the Oscar-winning actor approached him about playing the skull-faced villain in his new movie and had a clear vision for how to approach He-Man's evil nemesis.
"Jared approached us, because he loves Skeletor and has his own history with the character," Knight explained to Empire magazine. "He wanted to swing for the fences. And ultimately we landed on something that I'm really happy with. Skeletor's kind of the embodiment of toxic masculinity."
The Bumblebee filmmaker shared that he wanted an actor who could "craft their own version" of the Skeletor fans know from the original cartoons.
"Skeletor was a really interesting villain. He looked cool. He was scary. He was funny. He was insecure. And then of course he had this distinctive voice," he noted. "I wanted someone to craft their own version of that."
Knight added that he wanted Leto's version of the character to be a faithful recreation of the original look, right down to the skull face, big purple hood and eye sockets.
"Skeletor has a skull face," Knight declared. "That's just the way it is. It's a living, talking, emoting skull, and that's that."
Masters of the Universe stars Nicholas Galitzine as Prince Adam Glenn/ He-Man alongside Idris Elba as Man-At-Arms, Alison Brie as Evil-Lyn and Camila Mendes as Teela.
Elba told the publication that he wanted to be involved because the original toys and cartoons were "a really big part of (his) childhood".
"Travis, who's an incredible director, wanted to pay homage to the aesthetic of the original. I was all for that," he said, before quipping, "Though it made me think, 'S**t, I've gotta get into the gym!'"
He added, "It was like being at a big amusement arcade with all these massive characters."
Masters of the Universe will be released in cinemas on 5 June.
