Peacemaker: The Suicide Squad Spinoff Reportedly Adds Brad Anderson as Director

James Gunn's The Suicide Squad spinoff series Peacemaker has reportedly added veteran director Brad Anderson. According to a report from The Ronin, Anderson has joined the directing team on the HBO Max series. Anderson is best known for directing the Christian Bale-starring film The Machinist, but also has extensive credits directing for television, including numerous episodes of Fringe, Boardwalk Empire, and another DC series, Titans. Anderson joins the previously added Jessica Jones director Rosemary Rodriguez.

Set in the world Gunn created for The Suicide Squad, Peacemaker stars John Cena and "will explore the origins of the character that Cena will play in the upcoming film, a man who believes in peace at any cost -- no matter how many people he has to kill to get it." The eight-episode series is set to premiere in January 2022 on HBO Max. Last month at the WarnerMedia upfronts, Cena described his character as an "f—ed up superhero".

"He loves peace so much he'll kill for it. That one sentence, right there is so... f—ed!" Cena said.

"I think that the actual inspiration for Peacemaker was the sh*tty 1970s Captain America TV shows that I loved when I was a child," Gunn previously told Den of Geek. "And I think Peacemaker exemplifies a lot of things about society that are going on politically, and what people's beliefs are about America and the world. So being able to tell those stories that are slightly more socially conscious in their essence, but also outlandish, he lends itself to that."

"Peacemaker is an opportunity to delve into current world issues through the lens of this superhero/supervillain/and world's biggest douchebag," Gunn previously said of the spinoff series. "I'm excited to expand The Suicide Squad and bring this character from the DC film universe to the full breadth of a series. And of course, to be able to work again with John, Peter, and my friends at Warner Bros. is the icing on the cake."

In addition to Cena in the titular role, Peacemaker is expected to feature Danielle Brooks as Leota Adebayo, Robert Patrick as Auggie Smith, Jennifer Holland as Emilia Harcourt, Steve Agee as John Economos, Chris Conrad as Vigilante, Christopher Heyerdahl as Captain Locke, Chukwudi Iwuji as Clemson Murn, Lochlyn Munro as Larry Fitzgibbon, and Annie Chang as Sophie Song.

The Suicide Squad is scheduled to hit theaters and HBO Max on August 6th, and Peacemaker is expected to debut on the streaming service in January 2022.

Are you looking forward to Peacemaker? Let us know in the comments!