James Gunn - Suicide Squad

[Michael Watkins]

I really don’t think he’s just gonna do the exact same thing he did with GotG on Suicide Squad. He’s a talented filmmaker and probably doesn’t want to be pigeonholed as a one trick pony. So I wouldn’t expect the nonstop quips with this movie. I can see them going with a darker more espionage theme similar to Ostander’s run. They can scrap the previous lineup and create a whole new team lead by Bronze Tiger. There are a lot of good characters they could include from that run. Vixen, Nightshade, Blockbuster, Shade, Punch & Jewly, etc. They could also pull from DC’s huge list of great villains. I’m looking forward to see what Gunn comes up with.

sure. but why get Gunn to do that? does that really sound like a Gunn movie? this isn't a Russo Brothers situation. i could see Gunn doing an Ambush Bug (or other offbeat character) or even a Green Lantern movie. but what they are broadcasting by picking Gunn is that they want a GotG style Suicide Squad. it's bad optics unless he has some killer (and more serious) pitch.

[Zero Hunter]

It is not like Gunn is just the Guardians guy. He also wrote stuff like the Dawn of the Dead remake and Super and both those were pretty dark and nasty in places.

[Calighoula]

This is the first time I have heard this - maybe in your personal opinion, but by the objective measures available that isn't true. It polls slightly lower (but still quite high) for both critic and audience scores on Rotten Tomatoes (and doesn't have an audience/critic disconnect), rates an A on Cinemascore (same as the first) and made more money than the first (per BoxOfficeMojo). By all the metrics a studio is going to care about, it was a resounding success.

The question is going to be whether or not Gunn can adjust his storytelling style to fit a different set of characters, or will he be Zack Snyder (someone great if you have a darker story, but seemingly unable or unwilling to not darken up stuff that isn't supposed to be).

It's not the first time I have heard this. Vol2 was a major step down from the first movie, a big dumb cartoon, albeit a very expensive-looking one, with bad humor, lazy storytelling and lazier characterization. Yes, it made a lot of money.

[HowitzerJoe]

So...I guess it's not going to be possible to take Harley Quinn out right? Since she's a "fan favorite"? I don't get it. Even in this fictional universe, it's a stretch to think that Waller, who is putting together a kill squad composed of bad guys is going to recruit a crazy woman whose super is parading around deliriously with a baseball bat while dressing provocatively. How is this better than a trained solider?

[XPac]

So...I guess it's not going to be possible to take Harley Quinn out right? Since she's a "fan favorite"? I don't get it. Even in this fictional universe, it's a stretch to think that Waller, who is putting together a kill squad composed of bad guys is going to recruit a crazy woman whose super is parading around deliriously with a baseball bat while dressing provocatively. How is this better than a trained solider?

You can just as easily argue Hawkeye isn't signfinicantly more useful than a trained soldier with a machine gun. In Avengers, Black Widow had a hand gun during the Chitari invasion ... any NY cop had one of those.

In comics, the street level people get more love than they theoretically should in real life.

[Michael Watkins]

You can just as easily argue Hawkeye isn't signfinicantly more useful than a trained soldier with a machine gun.

he isn't. and we were given no reason why he wasn't using a gun in any of the movies. i'd call it a weakness of the franchise. something like that really does need explanation. they could have had him use a gun all the way up until being freed from Loki; vowing not to pick one up again out of shame for having taken the lives of his fellow agents. instead, he's just anachronistic SHIELD archer (because SHIELD has one archer on the payroll for reasons). in the Ultimates comics, this was explained by him being somewhat of a supersoldier (mechanically altered eyes).

[Michael Watkins]

It is not like Gunn is just the Guardians guy. He also wrote stuff like the Dawn of the Dead remake and Super and both those were pretty dark and nasty in places.

the Zack Snyder directed movie, you mean? the story was Romero's. the out of place humor (and, speculatively, the zombie baby) was Gunn's. Super was hot garbage.

[Jim Kelly]

Didn't James Gunn have to tone down his style and play it safe with GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY to fit the sexually repressed, family friendly guidelines of a Disney movie? So a SUICIDE SQUAD would be a return to form for him. Although, he probably won't be as daring as he used to be, given that's what got him in trouble in the first place.

[Michael Watkins]

here's hoping. i'd settle for Will Smith and Harley not being in it.

[Arfguy]

Good for Gunn. I hope he can bring an entertaining and exciting new take on the Suicide Squad. Hoping for more GotG Volume 1, rather than GotG Volume 2.

[Raiders]

I’m happy for Gunn, now he can be more creative and he don’t have to fit in the tight Disney’s guidelines.

[AJBopp]

he isn't. and we were given no reason why he wasn't using a gun in any of the movies. i'd call it a weakness of the franchise. something like that really does need explanation.

There is no reason to believe that it needed explanation. If it bothers you, that's on you, not on the films or the tens of millions that enjoyed the films without explanation. All fighters have their weapon of choice. Comic book fighters by nature have the more unusual choices.

[ed2962]

It's no secret that SS underwent re-shoots and they added humor and pop tunes to it, I'd say they were trying to make Suicide Squad more like GoTG initially so it makes sense that they'd get Gunn to do the sequel.

Also, this a film that has Capt Boomerang and Harley who was created as a character in a children's cartoon...why are some of us insisting that it has to be oh so grim and gritty?

[ed2962]

here's hoping. i'd settle for Will Smith and Harley not being in it.

I'm hoping for Will Smith to play Deadshot next time, rather than Will Smith playing Will Smith.

[Comic-Reader Lad]

I'm hoping for Will Smith to play Deadshot next time, rather than Will Smith playing Will Smith.

Althogh I did feel that his Deadshot was miles different than his Agent Jay, I think commonalities are to be expected. All the biggest movie stars are just playing variations on a successful movie persona they created.

Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, Tom Hanks are all in that club as are many other stars. It goes back to the beginnings of film. Humphrey Bogart was always Humphrey Bogart in every movie. Likewise, Cary Grant, Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Katharine Hepburn, James Stewart, etc. etc. always brought the same persona to each character they played. On TV, Lucy was always the same character in each of her 4 sitcoms.

And, so, Will Smith has the "Will Smith" persona.