Jared Leto Recalls Being Fired from Movie Theater Job as 'a Kid' for 'Selling Weed Out the Back Door'

Jared Leto was a hustler from a very young age.

While appearing on The Ellen DeGeneres Show Wednesday, the Oscar winner, 49, spoke about moviegoers returning to theaters and his new film House of Gucci. Leto recalled that he was fired from a movie theater job he had as a kid because he was caught selling marijuana during his shift.

"I think audiences will be very surprised," he said about Gucci. "It's in theaters, which is fun to have a film that's exclusively in theaters, and I'm excited about that because I love going to the movies."

"I actually worked at a movie theater when I was a kid. And I got fired for selling weed out the back door," said Leto. "I was just an entrepreneur."

Host DeGeneres joked, "You were hustling. Trying to sell popcorn and weed at the same time. What's wrong with that?" Leto responded in jest, "They go well together, some say."

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In 2019, Leto told New York magazine's The Cut about his favorite scents and how he knew the "smell of weed" at a young age.

"The smell of campfire and fire crackling. The smoke, burning embers. It's pretty a primal and powerful one," he said at the time, adding, "I remember the smell of weed, as well — there were a lot of hippies around in my early days. I knew the smell of weed before I knew the smell of a lot of things. Sorry, I shouldn't call it weed anymore, it is called cannabis."

The Dallas Buyers Club actor told W Magazine back in 2014 about his past selling marijuana.

"My first professional job? It's a toss up if it was selling weed or working at a barbecue restaurant as a dishwasher. At the barbecue restaurant I got paid $2.50 an hour and I had taxes taken out, which I'm fairly certain was illegal at the time. I was just happy to have a job. That meant freedom to me. The weed could have paid better than the dishwashing. The problem is, you know, is getting high on your own supply and breaking that golden rule."

House of Gucci is now playing in theaters.