Actor/singer Jared Leto becomes first man to scale Empire State Building legally: 'Harder than I thought'
"Suicide Squad" actor and "30 Seconds to Mars" lead singer Jared Leto became the first man ever to scale the Empire State Building in New York City legally.
The actor and musician climbed nearly 20 of the New York landmark's highest floors on Thursday at a height around 1,300 feet off the ground. The stunt was performed to promote his band’s 2024 world tour and upcoming album.
"I was more excited than nervous to tell you the truth," Leto told NBC's TODAY Show anchors after the climb, adding, "But I have to be honest, it was very, very hard. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Just the endurance that it took, the stamina that it took, and it was very sharp."
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Video shared to Leto’s Instagram account on Thursday captured his harrowing ascent from the 86th floor of the iconic skyscraper to its 104th floor. The actor mounted the climb in the early morning and with video depicting him scaling the top of the building solo while attached to a harness.
The building’s iconic lights provided a backdrop for Leto’s silhouette as he slowly moved to the top of the structure. Music from "30 Seconds to Mars" also played in the background.
Leto’s post featured a photo and video at the top of the building with Leto and one of his band members doing a stripped-down performance of one of their songs.
In the video, Leto – who had changed into a black suit – was singing into a microphone while his bandmate was playing a MIDI drum pad.
The caption for Leto’s post stated, "‘JARED LETO CLIMBS ICONIC EMPIRE STATE BUILDING TO CELEBRATE THE LAUNCH OF THIRTY SECONDS TO MARS’ MASSIVE GLOBAL TOUR.’ Today we launch SEASONS WORLD TOUR 2024 in celebration of our brand-new album, It’s The End of The World But It’s a Beautiful Day!!"
Leto’s caption also explained where he got the inspiration to pull off the stunt, stating, "I've had a fascination with the Empire State Building, the ‘world’s number one attraction’, since I was a kid. Not sure if it was Guinness world records, King Kong, but something about this iconic structure always captured my imagination."
He also expressed his love for climbing, adding, "As many of you also know, I love to climb. It’s one of the few things I’ve found that takes me away from some of the pressures of life and helps me to find a bit of freedom and equanimity."
When asked by TODAY anchors what the view at the top was like, Leto replied, "It’s incredible. it’s incredible. I mean to watch the sunrise overlooking the city that’s meant so much to me. Ever since I was a kid, you know, New York stood for the place that you went to make your dreams come true."
"And as a young kid I wanted to be an artist and New York was the place that you came to be an artist, and the Empire State Building was always that symbol for me."
"30 Seconds to Mars" 2024 world tour kicks off next July.
Reps for Leto and management for the Empire State Building did not immediately reply to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
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