After the box office success ofSuicide Squadin 2016, DC and Warner Bros. were eager to out a sequel, announcingSuicide Squad 2shortly after the first movie’s release. Unfortunately, things aren’t looking great forSuicide Squadfans as the production of the sequel has reportedly been delayed a year.
Even thoughSuicide Squadwas a box office success, it did not land well with critics, earning itself alow score of 27% on Rotten Tomatoes. People connected to the sequel have stated that DC and Warner Bros. are eager to get it things right this time around. One of the biggest issues with the firstSuicide Squadwas how rushed everyone was to put it out. For example, writer and director David Ayer was reportedly only given 6 weeks to write the script for the movie, which is certainly not enough time to fully develop a feature-length screenplay.
Suicide Squad 2was originally slated to shoot this fall, but according to Variety’s Justin Kroll, this will be changing. Based on Kroll’s insight, here is what he had to say.
“As forSuicide Squad 2, clearly moving out of 2018 shoot. The move to go with [Birds of Prey] not only had a lot to do with [Christina Hodson]’s script, but also the idea of doing withBatgirlwhat Marvel did with Black Panther in [Captain America: Civil War] by introducing them into universe before giving them [their] own film.”
The decision appears to have been made to speed up the production ofDC’s Birds of Prey. It was announced earlier today that Cathy Yan was attached to direct the project, with Margot Robbie set to produce and star. The current status ofBirds of Preyis apparently more promising at the moment thanSuicide Squad 2, and would be a great way to set up the beloved character Batgirl before she gets her own solo film, so it is understandable whyBirds of Preywould takeSuicide Squad 2’s filming slot.
This doesn’t mean thatSuicide Squad 2is off the table for DC, however, as it is reportedly still set to shoot in 2019, with an estimated 2020 release. While this might disappoint many fans who have been anxious to see theSuicide Squadsequel, this may actually be a good thing. Now DC and Warner Bros. will have an extra year to make sure that the script, story, cast, and crew for the movie are perfect.
In addition,Suicide Squadfans won’t be completely out of luck, asBirds of Preywill feature Harley Quinn as one of the main characters. Considering thatHarley Quinnwas one of the better parts ofSuicide Squad, we are optimistic thatBirds of Preywill be a proper substitute forSuicide Squad 2, and possibly even help set up where we will see these anti-heroes when we see them again in 2020.
While the information reported byJustin Kroll on Twitterhas yet to be officially confirmed by DC or Warner Bros., there’s a good chance that it is true based on theBirds of Preyannouncements earlier today. Hopefully this is a step in the right direction for the DC Extended Universe, and that it will result in a much better finished product for theSuicide Squadsequel.
