The Suicide Squad debuted in theaters and on HBO Max less than a week ago and James Gunn’s future with DC Films has been confirmed.
While Gunn hasn’t been shy about potentially having more to offer the DCEU, it’s been officially confirmed during press that led up to the debut of The Suicide Squad. When asked about bringing the director back after he’s done with Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy 3, Walter Hamada confirmed by saying “He’ll be back” and “We have more stuff planned”. It’s not clear if Hamada, the WB exec who is in charge of DC Films, meant James Gunn will be back with projects related to The Suicide Squad or something else.
When the studio first approached Gunn, they opened up their catalog of DC properties for him. There was an initial push for Superman, but it was The Suicide Squad the captured Gunn’s imagination. Talking with Entertainment Tonight, the filmmaker had more to say on his choice:
When they first came to me, it was really about what DC project I wanted to do. The first thing they brought up was Superman, and the second thing they brought up was Suicide Squad. So those were the first two projects, and then I had another project that they never brought up, never thought of, a couple of other ones that we talked about a little bit. People have talked about Krypto [the Superdog], they know that I brought that up at one point. So there’s different characters that came up that interested me, and I just took some time and started sketching out what the different stories could be with these different characters. It was obvious from the very beginning that Suicide Squad just captured my imagination. It was the most fun. People are like, ‘Why didn’t you do Superman or Justice League?’ I found this to be the most creatively fulfilling story. I know someone’s gonna do a Superman movie again. I don’t know that Polka-Dot Man’s gonna get his story told if I don’t tell it.
The Suicide Squad vs. Superman
James Gunn thought about putting Superman in The Suicide Squad. Talking with Filmstarts, Gunn explains the idea of the group of supervillains vs. the Kryptonian:
When I started writing The Suicide Squad, one idea was that they would fight Superman. The Suicide Squad has to catch Superman for some reason. This was all, just a vague idea. It’s gotten out of hand or is being controlled by someone. And then this group of lousy supervillains has to face the most powerful hero in the world.
Although we don’t know exactly what Gunn has in store with his future in the DCEU, it sure sounds like wants to play in the villain-verse some more. When asked about a The Suicide Squad sequel or spin-offs (in addition to Peacemaker) by Entertainment Tonight, the director says:
I have all sorts of ideas, and we talk about it all the time. So I don’t feel like I’m done with this villain-verse yet.
There’s a world where both DC and James Gunn get what they want from the director too. With the upcoming video game Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League, there’s a potential story where Gunn gets to play with a lot of DC’s toys. According to CNA Lifestyle, he doesn’t think it’s a bad idea for a potential Suicide Squad 3 either:
I’d have to think about that. I haven’t put any thought into a Suicide Squad vs. Justice League movie, but it’s not a bad idea. But I think I gotta figure out who the Justice League is first because I have no clue. I’m here in the middle of DC [and] people are always asking me, ‘Is Henry Cavill still Superman?’ I don’t know who Superman is, who knows!
Peacemaker
We won’t have to wait long for James Gunn’s next DCEU project, Peacemaker is set for HBO Max in January 2022. The show will be the first for the DCEU and star John Cena, reprising his role from The Suicide Squad. Until recently, it was tight-lipped whether or not the show would serve as a prequel or a sequel to Gunn’s film. The answer, as it turns out, is it’ll be both. Peacemaker will explore the origins of the titular character while, SPOILER WARNING, it puts him on his next mission “To save the f#¢king world.”
All in all, it’s safe to say that James Gunn will be sticking around with the DCEU for a while. Maybe we’ll get some stories from Justice League characters out of him, but after watching The Suicide Squad I think Gunn has found his DC niche in the villain-verse.
The Suicide Squad is out NOW in theaters and on HBO Max. Peacemaker will debut on the streaming service sometime in January 2022. Have you seen Gunn’s take on Task Force X yet? If so, let us know what you thought in the comments below!
Source: ComicBook.com (Article 1, Article 2, Article 3, Article 4, Article 5)
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