Over the past ten years of DC Comics-based movies, Suicide Squad’s Rotten Tomatoes approval rating tied with Green Lantern’s as the second worst. Jonah Hex was the only movie with a lower rating. Even so, Suicide Squad did well enough at the box-office that Warner Bros. decided to forge ahead with a sequel. They’ve even made it a top priority.
While the studio hasn't set an official release date for Suicide Squad 2, they brought in writer/director Gavin O'Connor (The Accountant) and Oscar-nominated (times three) producer Michael De Luca. Reports point toward a fall start for production, but that could happen sooner, as several cast members are already training for their roles.
The sequel is moving forward, but Warner Bros. must be aware that moviegoers may turn away if they see no sign of improvement after the Justice League disaster. The studio needs to come up with a solid story to win over the critics and spark some positive word of mouth.
To save face, Warner Bros. has to demonstrate that they’ve learned from the mistakes made with Suicide Squad. Remarks made by actor Joel Kinnaman (Colonel Rick Flag) during a recent interview with Yahoo may indicate that the studio is figuring things out. The 38-year-old Swedish-American actor admitted that Suicide Squad went wrong during the third act, adding:
It was a great set-up, great characters. I think when we do the second one, I wouldn't be surprised if we saw a more grounded version of the film. The characters are so extreme that it could be more effective if we saw less sorcery. I think the characters become more extreme if you see them in conjunction with real people.
Joel Kinnaman as Rick Flag in Suicide Squad (Photo Credit – Warner Bros.)
Of course, it could be the worst idea ever to pit the largely superpower-less Worst Heroes Ever against Enchantress (Cara Delevingne), an ancient evil sorceress bent on eradicating mankind!
David Ayer admitted some mistakes were made with Suicide Squad in a letter he addressed to fans in 2017:
Wish I had a time machine. I'd make Joker the main villain, and engineer a more grounded story.
Kinnaman's statement calls into question a popular rumor about Suicide Squad 2 that suggested that the SKWAD’s task in the sequel would be to track down Black Adam (Dwayne Johnson), another character who’s connected with the use of magic. Either the rumor was inaccurate, or the team’s assigned to a completely different mission in the sequel.
