4 women accuse American actor Jared Leto of committing sexual offenses when they were teenagers; he denies it

London – Four women who spoke to CBS News' partner network, the BBC, accused actor and bandleader Jared Leto of criminal sexual behavior during their youth.

One woman said the Oscar-winning actor and “Thirty Seconds to Mars” frontman sexually assaulted her in a motel when she was 17, while another told the BBC she slept with Leto in California at the same age – which would qualify as statutory rape.

A third woman told the BBC that Leto threatened to sexually assault her when she was 19 when she was alone in a hotel room. Another says that the star trained her when she was young, and at one point suggested that they should have sex.

Others said they received sexual calls or lewd comments from Leto.

In total, 10 women spoke to the BBC for the documentary, Jared Leto: Hollywood's Darkest Secret, including nine who said they were the first to share their stories.

The women all said they met Leto in their 30s to 40s, between 2002 and 2016. He is now 54 years old.

“This happened 25 years ago … he's gone,” said one of his accusers.

CBS News has not independently verified these allegations.

Leto's representatives shared a statement from him saying: “I have never sexually assaulted anyone in my entire life. These claims are completely false.”

Leto has been plagued by allegations of sexual misconduct for years, but has denied all wrongdoing. No charges have been filed against him.

Two men who worked with Thirty Seconds to Mars, Leto's band, told the BBC that the staff were uncomfortable with his interactions with teenage girls, saying he would invite them to his dressing room or the house where the band was recording.

The BBC said it was confirming several accounts from women, family and friends who were in contact with Leto at the time. The network also said it was looking at photos and messages supporting what the women said.

“I think everyone thought the age gap was too big,” one former team member told the BBC.

New allegations

The four women who accuse Leto of criminal behavior, identified by the BBC only as Isabel, Alex, Clara and Etta, go into detail in the documentary about what they say happened.

Isabel, now in her 40s, said she was 17 when she agreed to meet Leto at a hotel, where he began kissing her and used his hand to masturbate. He said he pulled away and told her he wanted to leave, adding that Leto then wrapped a towel around her and took her out of the “gross motel” room after appearing to check who was nearby.

Clara told the BBC that she slept with 17-year-old Leto, aged 34, at her home in California, while her friend was waiting for her in another room.

In California, if an adult has sex with someone under the age of 18 it can be considered statutory rape.

“He told me, 'I'd like you to call me daddy'. And it was pretending to be a little girl or 'my little girl',” she said in the documentary.

He said he was “absurd and vulnerable” and wasn't sure if the behavior was normal in adult relationships.

“No man in his 30s would look at a young person and think … she would be a good partner,” Clara told the BBC.

Etta told the BBC that Leto was sent a non-disclosure agreement after two years of sending her sexually graphic emails, even though he knew she was 16. “At least he talked about him and me having sex one time,” he said.

He never signed an NDA, which was seen by the BBC.

Previous allegations

In June 2025, nine women accused Leto of sexual misconduct in a news story published by the US Air Mail.

The story also explained how, last month, Los Angeles DJ Allie Teilz repeated a Facebook status from 2012 in which she wrote: “You [sic] not really LA until Jared Leto tried to force himself on you backstage… In a kilt.. And a snow hat.”

Air Mail reported that Teilz wrote in an Instagram story: “I was beaten and traumatized by this incident when I was 17 … He knew my age and didn't care.

A representative for Leto “categorically denies” the allegations in the Air Mail piece, calling Teilz's allegations “blatantly false.”

The BBC said it has listed more than 120 separate allegations made about Leto's behavior towards women, many of them online, some of them historical.

Leto won the 2014 Academy Award for best supporting actor for his role in “Dallas Buyers Club.”

Leto is expected to tour Europe and the UK next year with Thirty Seconds to Mars.