When you have a signature hairstyle as a celebrity, people tend to get very up in arms when you decide that it’s your hair, goddammit, not the public’s, and you want to do something different. The latest case in point is Jared Leto, fresh from sporting his lustrous, long locks at the 2015 Oscars.
After the series of oohs and aahs at the awards ceremony over his continued commitment to long hair, Leto must have felt briefly like he was going as insane as 2007 Britney from all the pressure to be beautiful. Perhaps this is what prompted his latest aesthetic decision to chop off all his hair, causing a media firestorm as grand and ardent as the one that brewed in 1999 after Keri Russell cut her hair on Felicity.
The public outcry over Leto’s change in appearance not only shows that everyone is looking for some sort of Messiah, but also that a haircut can make or break a career. Considering Leto shore his tresses for the role of The Joker in Suicide Squad, there’s a chance his fans and critics might forgive him. Then again, Leto has always been at his most lauded with longer hair (see: Jordan Catalano and Rayon in Dallas Buyers Club).
