Rumor: Idris Elba May Be Playing Deathstroke in The Suicide Squad

As the cast of James Gunn's reboot/sequel of Suicide Squad starts to round out, new details are starting to trickle out about the new team of villains forced to do the dirty deeds that other heroes won't. Newcomer Idris Elba will star in this newest iteration alongside some returning faces, but we still don't know much about the character he's playing.

But new rumors from Geeks Worldwide indicate that Elba's character in The Suicide Squad will have a daughter, intimating that he could be playing either Sportsmaster or Deathstroke, two vicious assassins with strong family ties. Of course this isn't confirmed, and there's been a lot of misplaced speculation over Elba's role ever since the casting was first announced.

Elba was initially said to be replacing Will Smith in his role as Deadshot, another assassin with a daughter to take care of. But reports soon came out saying he was playing a new character, which is more in line with Gunn's vision of making this a new iteration of the team.

But Deathstroke has already been cast in the DC film universe, as Joe Manganiello portrayed the character in the post-credits scene of Justice League. He was also meant to be the villain in Ben Affleck's canned Batman movie and then his own solo film, but those plans have since changed. So a recasting isn't off the table.

In the comics, Deathstroke has three children who follow different paths; Rose AKA Ravager becomes an assassin like her father, while Joey AKA Jericho becomes a hero and a member of the Teen Titans. Their brother Grant dies in a conflict, with the blame being placed on Deathstroke.

Sportsmaster is better known for his appearance in Young Justice, where he plays one of the primary antagonists. His daughter Artemis often battles him as a member of the Team, but the two do have dysfunctional affection for each other.

As the report notes, the script could be making a change to an established character and giving him a daughter just for this adaptation. Some fans have speculated that he'll be playing Bronze Tiger, a popular member of the Suicide Squad comics by John Ostrander and Kim Yale. It's that comic run that is serving as the primary source for Gunn's film, as he himself stated.

The Suicide Squad is scheduled to premiere in theaters on August 6, 2021.

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