Jared Leto

Born: 26 December 1971
Where: Bossier City, Louisiana

Born on the Louisiana bayou, Leto and older brother Shannon were raised in a nomadic, 'food-stamp poor' family headed by an unmarried bohemian mother. The trio spent time in such disparate locales as South America, Haiti, and a commune in Colorado, before settling in Virginia.

After studying at Philadelphia's University of Arts, Leto concluded he wasn't into being the next Jackson Pollock and journeyed to New York City to pursue an education at the School of Visual Arts.

In 1994 Jared won a regular part on the TV series My So Called Life, where he played the high school anti-hero Jordan Catalano, the on-off love interest of star Claire Danes' character.

His debut feature film came the following year in How to Make an American Quilt, also with Claire Danes, and the following year he co-starred in Last of the High Kings which was eventually only released on video.

By this time Hollywood producers were beginning to notice him and he was giving the leading role in Prefontaine, playing the title character.

In 1998 Jared came across his first big budget box office hit, with Terrence Malick's The Thin Red Line and made sure that his face and name became engraved on the cinema-goers minds with his role in Urban Legend.

A string of small roles in high-profile films followed. Acting alongside heavyweights Brad Pitt and Ed Norton, Jared was the blond Angel Face of David Fincher's Fight Club.

And he added to his status as a hunk with appearances as Winona Ryder's boyfriend in Girl, Interrupted and as a gay high school teacher who attracts the attentions of Robert Downey Jr. in Black And White.