Jared Leto Bows Out Of ‘Brilliance’, Not Dating Lupita Nyong’o Either

Looks like Jared Leto is taking Will Smith’s lead and bowing out of the film Brilliance. According to Nikki Finke, Leto actually turned down the role in the film.

Turning down the role for the film is a bit of a slap in director Julius Onah’s face. The two met to discuss the role, which usually means that the actor is making an effort in trying to snag the role, but Leto, who had retired from acting for five years to front the band 30 Seconds to Mars full time, decided not to take on the blockbuster hopeful.

Still, the film will go on and continue to look for its lead. As we previously reported, Brilliance is an adaptation of the bestselling novel of the same name by Marcus Sakey.

“Brilliance tells the story of a federal agent on the tail of a deadly terrorist with designs on starting a civil war — the twist is that the hunter and hunted are both ‘brilliants,’ a special subset of phenomenally gifted human beings, and the agent’s chase will entail betraying his own kind.”

It’s not yet known what lead to Jared Leto passing on the role. For Will Smith, it was a conflict in his shooting schedule. Smith, who bombed on his last outing, turned down the role to star in the concussion drama Game Brain, which is based on an article that ran in GQ magazine.

Leto’s pass on Brilliance leaves his schedule pretty open for the Marvel film Doctor Strange. Although nothing has been confirmed about Leto’s inclusion in the film, it’s something that fans want, and it seems like Leto is interested in, if going by reports. The only confirmation we have is movement on the film in terms of its director. According to The Wrap, director Scott Derrickson will be behind the camera.

As for Jared Leto, the only rumor confirmed is that he’s not dating fellow Oscar pal Lupita Nyong’o. Nyong’o finally confirmed to Vogue that she’s dating the Somalian born rapper. According to a source close to the actress,”They look very much in love and not afraid to show it. She loves his humanitarianism. They’re both passionate about African issues.”

Leto, on the other hand, is still rumored to be dating a few ladies. It was rumored via Star magazine that he was linked to model Dimphy Janse, but recently he was spotted with a different brunette. We don’t anticipate cracking Leto’s love life open when he casts with such a wide net.

[Image via Bing]