Oscar winning actor, Jared Leto, is coming at TMZ hard in a new lawsuit over a stolen video footage. According to reports, there is video of Leto, who is also the frontman for the band Thirty Seconds to Mars, and an engineer critiquing songs off of Taylor Swift’s “1989” album. Though throughout the video Leto seems to admire Taylor’s work, towards the end he could be heard saying “I mean, f— her” and “I don’t give a f— about her.”
TMZ got their hands on the video which was shot by a videographer retained by Jared Leto. They promised the videographer a $2,000 payment and requested the videographer sign a document confirming he had the legal right to deliver the footage. The videographer did not sign it because he did not have rights to the footage, Leto does. TMZ was warned the footage was stolen and still posted the video to their site anyway. Now Leto is coming for them and their parent company, Warner Bros Entertainment.
“I have chosen to file this lawsuit not because I want to, but in hopes it will encourage more people to stop trafficking in stolen goods, to follow proper legal procedure and so that it may motivate additional consideration for the harm these acts can create, especially when the only intention is to simply further the bottom line for the companies and corporations that commit these acts,” says Leto in a statement.
Details as to how much Leto plans to sue TMZ for have not been released. It is also unclear whether or not TMZ paid the videographer, even though he refused to sign over the rights to the video.
Leto has since apologized to Taylor Swift via Twitter. “The truth is I think @taylorswift13 is amazing + an incredible example of what’s possible. If I hurt her or her fans my sincerest apologies.”
You can read Leto’s entire statement HERE.
