With a title like The Suicide Squad, it’s expected that a lot of James Gunn’s expansive DC character roster will die. But according to the director, these deaths were picked for specific narrative reasons.
During an interview on Jake’s Takes, Gunn broke down his logic for killing characters and whether certain “qualities” were needed to ensure a Task Force X member’s survival. “I don’t want to say it was random, but really every death served the story,” he explained. “I mean there were some characters that I chose and I knew that they… when I chose those characters they were going to die and some of them that were going to die earlier and some that were going to die later. But then sometimes you know when you’re crafting a story you’ve got to, you know… part of it is just following instinct and what feels good and what doesn’t feel so good.”
Gunn also conceded that his writing “flow” resulted in the loss of characters who he didn’t want to see meet their end, though he didn’t name any particular characters from The Suicide Squad. “There’s two characters in particular that every time I watch the movie, I get teary-eyed because I don’t want to see those characters die,” the director teased. “But I think it served the story and it served the greater story of the film so that’s why it happens.”
In both the comics and adaptations, Suicide Squad members are deliberately expendable due to the missions they take and the remote-controlled explosives Amanda Waller places in their necks to ensure cooperation. This attribute has been featured in both the 2016 Suicide Squad movie and shows like the CW’s Arrow and Justice League Unlimited, as well as two animated movies, Batman: Assault on Arkham and Suicide Squad: Hell to Pay. Of the original Suicide Squad cast, Viola Davis, Margot Robbie, Jai Courtney and Joel Kinnaman will be reprising their roles as Waller, Harley Quinn, Captain Boomerang and Rick Flagg, respectively, with the remaining cast featuring new team members such as Peacemaker, Bloodsport, Polka-Dot Man and Ratcatcher 2.
Written and directed by James Gunn, The Suicide Squad arrives in theaters and on HBO Max Aug. 6.
Source: YouTube
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