Jared Leto to star as Playboy Magazine founder Hugh Hefner in biopic

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- "My So Called Life" star Jared Leto is set to play Hugh Hefner in an upcoming biopic, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Brett Ratner, a friend of Leto, said he got the rights to the Playboy Magazine founder's story and when Leto found out, he told him that he wanted the role as Hefner.

"I want to play him. I want to understand him," Leto told Ratner.

Hefner passed away Sept. 27 at the age of 91, but the movie had been in development since 2007, according to The Reporter.

Leto won an Academy Award, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild for his role as a transgender woman in "Dallas Buyers Club."

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