Jared Leto Now Runs Film Streaming Platform Fandor, Which Makes Sense in a 2017 Kind of Way
Everything’s gone topsy-turvy in 2017, and not in the fun way, where Mike Leigh dramatizes the life and times of operetta composers Gilbert and Sullivan. Our reality TV star President now clutches glowing orbs of power with foreign dignitaries, young people are pouring lattes into gutted-out avocados, and four hours can’t elapse without some precedent-shattering new development on the global stage. In a year where straight-up cuckoo-bananas insanity has settled into the new normal, doesn’t it make a nonsensical sort of sense for real-life supervillain Jared Leto to assume the reins of power at our beloved Fandor?
A chilling news blast sent shockwaves through the entertainment trade papers last night, as independent film streaming platform Fandor made the announcement that their new Chief Creative Officer would be this man. Deadline quoted a few bits of Fandor’s official press release, in which the duties of the CCO were vaguely outlined as “being integral in establishing the creative voice that defines Fandor” and that “in addition to providing input on original programming, Leto will host one of Fandor’s live streaming events slated for later this year.” One can’t help but wonder how much of this job is just Leto lending his celebrity to the platform as opposed to substantive, hands-on work. Ostensibly, we’ll get an answer when the complete filmography of Jared Leto arrives on Fandor.
This announcement comes hot on the heels of a more troubling announcement of mission shift from Fandor the week before last. When the platform shut down their online magazine Keyframe, the CEO announced that the service would attempt to move toward the mainstream, a change-up that he admitted will not be for everyone. Not to put too dramatic a point on it, but is Fandor losing its soul? For all we know, maybe Leto will mount a principled push to get more films from Kihachi Okamoto on the service. But for now, the future looks grim.