Before we begin, cast your mind back to the distant past of October 2014. DC Comics have just announced their huge onslaught of incoming superhero goodness. Within the list, films with release dates as distant as 2020 were announced. As you might expect, the bigs guns were brought out, Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice for a 2016 release, and Justice League Parts 1 and 2 for releases in 2017 and 2019 respectively. However, one of the films that was announced was perhaps less well-known to those outside of the comic book industry. This film was Suicide Squad.
For those who don’t know, the Suicide Squad are an organisation in the DC Comics lore, comprising primarily of the Joker, his lackey Harley Quinn, the sniper Deadshot, government secret agent/brute Rick Flag, the magical Enchantress and finally the aptly-named Captain Boomerang. Other notorious members from the Squad’s 55-year history include Killer Frost, Deathstroke and Bronze Tiger.
Even if you haven’t hear of the Suicide Squad themselves, you will almost definitely have heard of the actors who are due to play them when the film releases in 2016. Below I have listed the official cast, as released 02/12/2014:
Jared Leto – The Joker
Will Smith – Deadshot
Tom Hardy – Rick Flag
Margot Robbie – Harley Quinn
Jai Courtney – Boomerang (notice the abbreviation)
Cara Delevigne – Enchantress
Personally, I think this cast is quite so-so at present. There are some inclusions that have left me baffled, such as Cara Delevigne as Enchantress, but also some that make me excited, most notably Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn. However, I will admit that as a huge DC Comics fan, and having a reasonable knowledge of these characters, I do have a few concerns. Most notably, Jai Courtney as Boomerang. I have seen Divergent, in which he played the absolute a-hole that is Dauntless leader Eric, but other than that, he hasn’t been in a lot, certainly nothing on such a huge scale, with immense amounts of pressure, thousands of people wanting this to be good. Just looking down his IMDb profile, the top four entries are generic action film Divergent, generic action film A Good Day to Die Hard, generic action film Jack Reacher and generic action film I, Frankenstein. As you can see, this certainly does’t bode well, and I for one do not want this to turn out as a generic action film.
Another issue I have is the casting of Will Smith. Sure, he has turned out some brilliant, at times Oscar-worthy performances, but as of late, he hasn’t been in much, and what he has been in has been, quite frankly, terrible. Take After Earth, for example. Need I say more? Although, Smith has proven time and time again that he is capable of greatness, we just have to hope that he can get back into form in time for the film’s release.
Luckily, the majority of the casting is excellent, most notably Jared Leto as the Joker. I can’t wait to see his portrayal of the Clown Prince of Crime, and I’m apprehensive to see if it can come close to the heights that Heath Ledger reached with The Dark Knight in 2008. Tom Hardy as Rick Flag is also exciting, especially when considering his involvement in the DC Cinematic Universe in the past, and Margot Robbie, one of the most promising young actresses in recent times, as the amazing Harley Quinn fills me with excitement. It will be the first time Quinn is shown on the big screen, so she’s at a little bit of a disadvantage considering she has no cinematic material to base her performance on, but she is very talented and I’m sure she can pull it off.
Are you excited for Suicide Squad in 2016? Whatever your opinion, leave a comment below and be sure to share it on Facebook and Twitter.
Suicide Squad will release in cinemas in 2016.
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