James Gunn reveals all 24 actors cast for The Suicide Squad
Writer-director James Gunn just revealed the full cast for his upcoming Suicide Squad reboot, and it contains several big names.
Perhaps the most significant takeaway is that The Suicide Squad cast list officially confirms Margot Robbie will reprise her role as Harley Quinn in the new film (she’s also playing the character in Warner Bros’. upcoming Birds of Prey). The list also confirms Joel Kinnaman returning as government agent Rick Flag, Jai Courtney as Captain Boomerang, and Viola Davis as Amanda Waller.
There’s a considerable number of new names to the franchise, most of whom have been at least floated in the press over the last several months.
There’s Idris Elba playing an unnamed new character, Guardians of the Galaxy veteran Michael Rooker (reportedly playing King Shark), Nathan Fillion (Firefly), WWE star John Cena, Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who), Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok) Pete Davidson (Saturday Night Live, and reportedly just doing a cameo), David Dastmalchian (The Dark Knight, and reportedly playing Polka-Dot Man), and newcomer Daniela Melchior (reportedly as Ratcatcher).
Here’s the full list, with a tease from Gunn that suggests the film might have a high body count:
Don’t get too attached. #TheSuicideSquad pic.twitter.com/uITPhrDzz2
— James Gunn (@JamesGunn) September 13, 2019
Actors who were in David Ayer’s critically lambasted 2016 Suicide Squad but are not on the list here include Will Smith as Deadshot (he apparently had a scheduling conflict), Jared Leto’s Joker, Cara Delevingne as Enchantress, Karen Fukuhara’s Katana, and Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje’s Killer Croc.
Also absent is Guardians’ Dave Bautista, who lobbied for a role in the film and heavily supported Gunn during his ouster from Disney over old tweets, and some thought he might show up here.
Despite some returning characters, producer Peter Safran has said the film, which is also written by Gunn, “is a total reboot” and not a sequel. “It’s everything you would hope from a James Gunn script, and I think that says a lot and that promises a lot and I know that we will deliver a lot,” he said.
Gunn has said that Warner Bros. called him to consider tackling Suicide Squad within two days of his firing from Disney’s Guardians franchise. “I don’t think I’ve had as much fun writing a script since maybe Dawn of the Dead,” he told Deadline. Disney later rehired Gunn to work on Guardians 3.
The Suicide Squad will be released Aug. 6, 2021.
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